Assam Man Commits Suicide After Wife is Excluded from NRC

Guwahati, August 29, 2019:

The National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam continues to torment the people of Assam who have been excluded from the draft.

In yet another shocking incident related to the NRC, Pritibhushan Dutta of Sonaipara village of Karimganj district of Assam committed suicide as his wife’s name was not included in the NRC draft. Dutta’s wife, Namita Dutta’s name was excluded from the NRC and following this he was suffering from mental trauma. Ultimately, he committed suicide by hanging himself in the verandah of his house.

A neighbor, while talking to mediapersons, said that the man, , was stricken with worry as his wife's name was not included in the NRC.

"He was besotted with worry at all times. This caused him a great deal of mental trauma", he said.

All Assam Minorities Students' Union (AAMSU) leader Azizur Rahman told Inside Northeast, "a few people have mentally broken down mentally in fear of facing exclusion, and we are extremely aggrieved at what happened at Karimganj just ahead of the NRC and I urge people not to resort to suicide. People who will be excluded from the list will not immediately be termed as 'foreigners'. There is a provision of appeals, the Courts are there. AAMSU is also carrying out different programs.."

Reacting to this incident, AAMSU Vice President Saifuddin Ahmed, said, "The NRC process should have  gone off without a hitch, but people have been called for hearing after hearing. Prateek Hajela has been operating outside the SOP, many people died in accidents in Sonapur. They have been unable to allay fears, and have also been unable to provide the necessary facilities. The Government has failed the people.."

It has been discovered that about 89% who have been excluded from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) are suffering from anxiety.

This staggering figure has been revealed by a survey by the National Campaign Against Torture (NCAT) has revealed.

The NCAT conducted a field survey on the mental health of the NRC-excluded in Baksa, Goalpara and Kamrup districts from July 16 to 20.

The report, “Assam’s NRC: Four Million Tales of Mental Torture, Trauma and Humiliation” was released on Friday.

According to the survey, off the 91 respondents interviewed, 81 said they had been suffering from extreme anxiety due to the fear of deportation and of separation from family members. Their woes are further compounded by a lack of money to appear before the Foreigners’ Tribunals or approach the Gauhati High Court and the Supreme Court. Nine others were found to be suffering from moderate anxiety and one from mild anxiety.

This translates into 89% of the respondents suffering from extreme anxiety, 10% from moderate and 1% from mild anxiety. According to the report, this is leading to sleep disorder, appetite loss, affecting thought process and work, and causing a feeling of shame and isolation.

If these figures are taken as the standard, it could be deduced that of the 41,10,169 persons who stand excluded from the draft NRC at present, it can be said 36,99,152 persons are suffering from extreme anxiety and 4,11,017 from mild anxiety.

The NCAT report also pointed out that mental torture had forced at least 31 persons to commit suicide since July 2015 after being excluded from the NRC.

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