'Principle Is To Live & Let Live': Supreme Court Upholds Validity Of Section 6A Citizenship Act Of 1955 Recognising Assam Accord

The Supreme Court declared that those who have entered Assam from Bangladesh on or after March 25, 1971 are all illegal immigrants, who must be identified and deported.

The plea challenging section 6A wanted 1951 to be made as the cut-off date for inclusion in the National Register of Citizens instead of 1971.

Source : PTI

The Supreme Court on Thursday pronounced judgment and uphled the constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955 with 4:1 majority. The Section 6A of Citizenship Act, 1955, had recognised the Assam Accord and allowed the foreign migrants of Indian origin, who came to Assam after the 1st January, 1966 but before the 25th March, 1971, from Bangladesh to seek Indian citizenship.

 

The top court by upholding Section 6A has affirmed March 24, 1971 as the cut-off date for entry into the state, making those people who entered the state after that date “illegal immigrants”. The majority judgment declared that those who have entered Assam from Bangladesh on or after March 25, 1971 are all illegal immigrants, who must be identified and deported. The plea challenging Section 6A wanted 1951 to be made as the cut-off date for inclusion in the National Register of Citizens instead of 1971.

 

A 5-judge Constitution Bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud, Justices Surya Kant, MM Sundresh, JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra pronounced the verdict. The Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud while pronouncing the verdict said that there are three opinions and Justice JB Pardiwala has dissented, while Justice Suryakant has written for himself and others. The CJI has written his opinion.

 

CJI Chandrachud while holding that the cut off date of March 25,1971 was correct to grant the citizenship to migrants from Bangladesh said that the migration from east Pakistan into Assam was greater than total migration to India post independence and thus it satisfies the condition of rationale yardstick.

 

"Section 6A is neither under inclusive nor over inclusive," CJI opined. He further added that the Assam Accord was a political solution to the problem of illegal migration and Section 6A was the legislative solution. And Parliament had the legislative competence to enact the provision. 

 

CJI Chandrachud held that registration is not the de facto model to confer citizenship in India and Section 6A cannot be held to be unconstitutional only because it does not prescribe a process of registration.

"It is duty of the union to safeguard states against external aggression, reading duty of Article 355 as a right would place emergency rights with citizens and courts which would be catastrophic. Mere presence of different ethnic groups in a state does not mean infringement of Article 29(1)...Petitioner has to prove that one ethnic group is not able to protect their own language and culture just because of the presence of another ethnic group," the CJI Chandrachud opined. 

Justice Surya Kant while reading his opinion written for himself, Justice Manoj Misra and Justice MM Sundresh, said, "We have also upheld the constitutional validity of Section 6A. We have turned down objections on delay laches and judicial review. We cannot allow one to choose their neighbours and it runs against their principle of fraternity. The principle is to live and let live." 

The pleas against Section 6A primarily challenged provisions of the Assam Accord which formed the basis of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, published in 2019.

What Was Assam Accord?

The Section 6 A was inserted in 1985 following the Assam Accord, which was an agreement between the Rajiv Gandhi government and the leaders of the Assam movement who had protested for the removal of illegal migrants who entered Assam from Bangladesh. The accord signed with Assam student leaders in 1985, required amendment to Section 6 of the Citizenship Act following a prolonged agitation against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the state.

 

According to clause 5 of the Assam Accord January 1, 1966, shall serve as the base cut-off date for the detection and deletion of “foreigners”. However, it also makes provisions for the regularisation of individuals who arrived in Assam after that date and up till March 24, 1971. The cut-off date of March 25, 1971 was the date when the Bangladesh liberation war ended. 

Indigenous groups of Assam had challenged this provision, contending that it legalised illegal infiltration of foreign migrants from Bangladesh and wanted 1951 to be made as the cut-off date for inclusion in the National Register of Citizens instead of 1971.

In September 2023, a five-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud passed procedural directions in the batch of petitions challenging Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955.

In January 2023, the apex court observed that the primary question in the case was “whether Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955 suffers from any constitutional infirmity.”

Assam is the only state in India to have such a cut-off date. The Bench today gave verdict upholding the constitutional validity of Section 6 A. The Assam NRC of 2019 was conducted on the basis of provisions of Section 6 A.