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State Govt moves SC over NRC update

By SPL CORRESPONDENT

NEW DELHI, July 20 - The Assam government today formally filed an interim affidavit in the Supreme Court pleading for allowing the 2014 voters list as an additional document for determining citizenship in the NRC update process.

The move is in keeping with the decision of the State government announced by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, who last week had said that the State government would soon file an interim application in the Supreme Court seeking inclusion of voters lists from 1985 to 2014, as additional documents for the NRC update work.

�Our stand is that all electoral rolls from 1985 to 2014 should be taken as additional documents. The 1985 voters list was prepared on the basis of the 1971 voters list. So our stand is the same as the modalities for NRC update as the voters list of 1985 and subsequent ones are based on the voters list of 1971. We are not deviating from the modalities,� he said.

The issue did figure during the course of submission in the apex court last week when the State government�s counsel made a mention about it before the Division Bench of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Rohinton F Nariman.

Meanwhile, the Asom Gana Parishad today filed an intervention petition in the Supreme Court, seeking full constitutional protection for the indigenous people and reposed full faith in the ongoing process of update of the National Register of Citizens under the supervision of the apex court.

Talking to this newspaper, former MP Kumar Deepak Das said the regional party in its affidavit has called for full protection of the indigenous people. Various political parties have filed petitions in the Supreme Court to frustrate the process of update of NRC. The AGP has full confidence in the ongoing process being supervised by the apex court, said Das.

The AGP in its affidavit has suggested that all those who came to Assam after March 25, 1971 should be identified and deported. No illegal migrant should be allowed to stay and the indigenous people should be given full legal protection.

The main objective of the Assam Accord should not be defeated, the affidavit said.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is likely to take up the bunch of petitions filed by various individuals and groups. They include organisations like Asam Sahitya Sabha, Barak Valley Human Rights Protection Committee, All Assam Tea Tribes Students Union and Bhojpuri Parishad, besides Congress leader Himanta Biswa Sarma.

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