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Title: Regarding preparation of National Register of Citizens in Assam.
SHRI SARBANANADA SONOWAL (DIBRUGARH): Mr. Speaker, Sir, due to heavy infiltration across the Bangladesh border, the people of Assam who are the bona fide citizens of India have been gradually losing their ground. Considering the gravity of the situation, hon. Prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, hon. Home Minister Shri Shivraj Patil, and the Chief Minister of Assam Shri Tarun Gogoi held tripartite talks on Assam Accord with All Assam Students’ Union representatives on 5th May 2005 at New Delhi. In that meeting, the hon. Prime Minister and the hon. Home Minister had promised them preparation of a National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam through Assam Government within a timeframe to protect the political and cultural identity of the people of Assam. The target date for completion was September 2007.
However, I am very much pained to inform the House that none of the above hon. Ministers has shown interest in the preparation of the said National Register of Citizens in Assam so far. As a result, nothing concrete has happened in this regard. The people of Assam demand that foreigners be detected on the basis of the NRC within the provisions of law. The Central Government cannot solve the problem and safeguard the identity of Assam and its people unless the interest of the country is given priority. NRC is the only option which could serve as the basis, the starting point, for solving the present serious problem relating to detection of foreigners and deletion of their names from the voters’ list in Assam.
I strongly feel about the need to implement the commitments and conviction on the part of Central as well as State Governments to bring out basic documents for the people of Assam. For this purpose, modalities for preparation of NRC have to be done immediately and regular monitoring should be conducted by the PMO and the office of the Home Minister.
I, therefore, urge upon the hon. Prime Minister and the Home Minister of India to take all possible urgent and necessary steps to prepare the NRC as per the commitment given to the people of Assam.