NRC in Assam: State govt assures it won't curtail rights, privileges of those not mentioned in first draft

Guwahati: Nobody’s rights and privileges will be curtailed if his or her name does not figure in the final draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) to be published on 30 July, senior Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said. After the final publication, there will be claims, objections and correction procedure and people will be able to avail these services, he told a press conference on Saturday. “A draft is a draft. Nobody’s rights and privileges will be taken away on the basis of the draft NRC. No one will be sent to any detention camp,” the state finance minister said. [caption id=“attachment_4371757” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Himanta Biswa Sarma. Twitter @himantabiswa[/caption] Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal had on Thursday stated that no one will be treated as foreigner if his or her name does not figure in the final draft. Director General of Police Kuladhar Saikia told PTI that the police are carrying out community engagement programmes to avoid misunderstanding and keeping a strict watch on social media so that no fake news or hate messages are circulated. When asked about the preparedness of the police force, Saikia said the Assam Police is fully prepared and alert to maintain peace and order in the society at any cost after the final NRC draft is out. The Centre has already sent over 22,000 paramilitary forces personnel to beef up security in Assam and adjoining states. The union home ministry has also asked the Assam government not to take any action against those whose names do not figure in the NRC. Meanwhile, several neighbouring states have kept their police forces on alert to thwart possible infiltration of illegal immigrants post-July 30. Assam shares its boundaries with Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura. The NRC is being updated with 24 March, 1971 as the cut-off date for legitimate claim to Indian citizenship in Assam. The first draft of the NRC was published during the intervening night of 31 December and 1 January, containing 1.9 crore names out of a total applications of 3.29 crore people in Assam. Assam is the only state in the country having an NRC which was first prepared in 1951.