Assam NRC authority moves SC seeking re-verification of citizens’ list

New Delhi:The National Register of Citizens (NRC) authority in Assam on Thursday approached the Supreme Court seeking a comprehensive and time-bound re-verification of NRC citing irregularity in the process of making its draft that was published on August 31, 2019.

In the interlocutory application, the State Coordinator of Assam NRC, Hitesh Dev Sarma also sought the removal of illegal voters from Assam’s electoral rolls besides the revision of the draft NRC.

The plea also prayed for a supplementary list under a relevant clause of the Schedule of Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.

It contended that "glaring anomalies of serious nature" have been noticed in the process which relates to security and integrity of the nation, saying several people who are not OI (Original Inhabitants) have been added in the NRC under the OI list.

The application further said that some “issues of substantive importance” cropped up while preparing the rejecting slips, thus delaying the process.Among the 3.3 crore applications, more than 19 lakh people were left out of the final list of the Assam NRC that was published on August 31, 2019. The number of people left out comprised around 6 per cent of Assam’s entire population.

In July 2019, the Assam government and the Centre had knocked on the doors of the top court for a re-verification exercise but was dismissed after a submission said that 27 per cent of the names were already verified again.

After taking oath on Monday, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had asserted to partially verify the contentious National Register of Citizens.(UNI)