NRC authorities urged to give adequate time to people to

An organisation formed to protest against the citizenship (amendment) bill on Monday demanded that adequate time for submitting documents be given to people who have been issued re-verification orders by the National Register of Citizens (NRC) authorities in Assam.

The NRC authorities have directed nearly 30,000 people to submit their documents for re-verification within a day or two at places which are around 500 to 800 kilometre from their current place of stay, the Forum Against Citizenship Act Amendment Bill said.

This has led to "harassment and tension" among those people, Forum Chairman Dr Hiren Gohain and Convenor Manjit Mahanta claimed in a statement.

 

"The Supreme Court had rejected the proposal for re- verification but this sudden decision by the NRC authorities has created dismay among the people and has led to doubt and lack of confidence regarding the intentions of the authorities," they alleged.

The process of updating the NRC was welcomed by people of all communities, irrespective of their religion and they had extended their full cooperation to the process, they claimed.

"Despite the process being carried out under the supervision of the Supreme Court and within legal framework, it is indeed disheartening to note that some administrative decisions have created unimaginable hardships and harassment to a section of people," the two added.

The Forum demanded that the NRC authorities do not harass the people and give them adequate time to submit their documents.

Congress MLAs had on Sunday also claimed that a large number of people in Lower Assam districts were asked by the NRC authorities to appear for hearing within 48 hours in faraway districts of Upper Assam to prove their citizenship.

The Congress legislators wrote to NRC State Coordinator Prateek Hajela, the chief secretary and the director general of police urging them to arrange for vehicles for those who have to attend the hearings between Monday and Wednesday.

Meanwhile, several people from Sontoli in Lower Assam to Golaghat in Upper Assam were injured when their bus collided with a truck at Khanapara area here.

The victims were going to submit their documents for re-verification.

The Forum also urged the state government to provide them with proper medical aid and also urged the people to provide help to the injured persons who have been admitted to the Guwahati Medical College Hospital.