Assam NRC draft: 40 lakh names left out; Centre doing vote bank politics, says Mamata

Home Minister Rajnath said the draft completely "impartial" and those whose names are not included should not panic as they will get an opportunity to prove their Indian citizenship.

People check their names on the final draft of the states National Register of Citizens after it was released, at a NRC Seva Kendra in Nagaon. PTI Photo

NEW DELHI: The "complete draft" of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was published on Monday featuring 2.9 crore names out of the total 3.29 crore applicants in Assam. The names of 40.07 lakh applicants, however, did not find a place in the historic document. The NRC draft was published online by the Registrar General of India. The first list of the NRC process was released on December 31 last year, in which around 1.9 crore people out of the total applications of 3.29 crore people were included. Assam is the first Indian state where the NRC is being updated after 1951, with March 24, 1971 as the cut-off date, to include names of genuine Indian citizens. This divide and rule policy will finish the country: Mamata Banerjee hits out at Centre West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee hit out at the Centre over the exclusion of 40 lakh names in the NRC saying those "Indian citizens have become refugees" in their own land. Banerjee also alleged that the central government has resorted to "vote-bank politics". "This divide and rule policy will finish the country", she said. Banerjee also claimed that names of people who have passports, Aadhaar and voter cards have also been excluded from the final draft. Not final NRC, the opposition must not politicise it: Rajnath Singh Home Minister Rajnath said the draft completely "impartial" and those whose names are not included should not panic as they will get an opportunity to prove their Indian citizenship. "No coercive action will be taken against anyone. Hence, there is no need for anyone to panic. This is a draft and not the final list," Rajnath was quoted by PTI as saying. Even someone whose name is not in the final list can approach the foreigners tribunal, Singh said. "Some people are unnecessarily trying to create an atmosphere of fear. I want to assure all that there is no need for any apprehension or fear. Some misinformation is also being spread. The NRC process has been done impartially," he said. The home minister said only after the disposal of claims and objections, the final NRC will be published and even after the final NRC, every person will get an opportunity to approach the foreigners tribunal. "This means that even those whose names do not figure in the final NRC will get an opportunity to approach the tribunal. There is no question of any coercive action against anyone," he said. No one excluded from NRC will be declared foreigner: MHA official No person, excluded from the draft NRC published today, will be declared a foreigner as such powers are vested only with tribunals where one can approach for remedies, a senior Home Ministry official said. The NRC is a list of the state's citizens and exclusion of name does not automatically make anyone a foreigner, the official said. The power of declaring a person as foreigner is vested with the foreigners' tribunal set up for the purpose and all aggrieved persons can approach it if they have exhausted the options available with NRC authorities, he said. The NRC is an application-based process and if someone does not apply for inclusion of name, that person's name will not figure in the list, however prominent the individual may be, the official said. Govt should convene an all-party meeting on Assam NRC issue, demands Congress The Congress today asked the government to immediately convene an all-party meeting on the NRC issue and inform the opposition on the proposed steps to ensure that no Indian citizen is left out. Senior party spokesperson Anand Sharma said there should be no politics over the issue. "The government must immediately call a meeting of leaders of all parties and should inform about the steps it proposes to take," he said, adding that it would be proper if the meeting is called on Tuesday. Process of claims, objection to NRC will start from Aug 30: MHA The process of claims and objections to the draft NRC in Assam will start from August 30 and continue for a month, a senior Home Ministry official said. The process if required can be also extended by another month, he said. The process of claims and objections to the NRC will start on August 30 and the date was fixed taking into consideration that those whose names are not part of the draft NRC can gather documents in the next one month and prepare to approach NRC authorities, the official said. The window of claims and objections will be from August 30 to September 30 and if required NRC authorities may extend the period by another month -- till October 30, he said. During the period, no coercive action will be taken against anyone, the official said. (With inputs from PTI)