SC ruling should set seal on citizenship in Assam

The Supreme Court which upheld the validity of section 6A of the Citizenship Act has streamlined the procedure for granting citizenship to people in Assam. The ruling by the apex court’s constitutional bench on Thursday (October 18) should set the final seal on the contentious question of citizen and non-citizens in the state of Assam which witnessed ethnic turmoil for six years prior to 1985 when the Rajiv Gandhi government signed the Assam Accord with All Assam Students Union (AASU) and All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (AAGSP). Interpreted in simple terms, the decision of the court recognises that those who entered Assam before January 1966 should be deemed Indian citizens; those who entered the state between January 1, 1966 and March 24, 1971 should be conferred citizenship after fulfilment of specific procedure while those who entered after March 25, 1971 need to be identified, declared foreigners and deported.

The case had arisen following insertion of section 6A after the Assam Accord was signed in 1985. Two NGOs, namely Assam Sanmilita Mahasangha and Assam Public Works had challenged the insertion of section 6A in 2012 arguing that the cut-off date of March 25, 1971 was unreasonable and would pose a threat to the language, demography and culture of the State. They had contended that Assam was being singled out in matters of citizenship rules and why the 1950 cut-off date should not apply to Assam as it did elsewhere.

The court has seemingly taken a lenient view of the issue taking into consideration the reasons for heavy exodus from former East Pakistan, Assam’s geographical situation and Pakistan Army’s brutal crackdown against people demanding liberation from Pakistan, hence the reference to fraternal relations. The court has noted that “Legislative objective of Section 6A was to balance the humanitarian needs of the migrants of Indian origin and the impact of the migration on the economic and cultural needs of Indian states”.