Tribal Refugees in Derapathar Cry Foul after Exclusion from NRC

Nagaon, September 1, 2019:

Refugees, mostly belonging to tribal communities, living Nagaon's Derapathar area, have expressed their dismay after their names were omitted from the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

After the final draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was published yesterday, more than nineteen lakh people were left 'stateless' as their names do not figure in the list. Many of the people being deprived of 'citizenship' hailing from Derapathar in Nagaon belong to tribal communities, the 'sons of the soil'.

Many of these people settled were relocated in the area after the partition after they arrived from East Pakistan. Today, many of these people, mostly women, came out of their houses and took to the streets, demanding the Government to include them in the list.

Butoli, an old lady, say, "the mobile says my name is not there. Checked online." Upon being asked why her name her name has been excluded, she says she has "no idea." "Gave my hands, legs, but to no avail", she laments.

Another lady, Luha Hajong, says that she is the only person from her family who has been excluded. "Many people in Derapathar have been excluded. I cannot tell how many exactly, because it is a large area, but at least 50% of us have been excluded", she said, adding that many tribal communities have settled in the area, such as Garos, Hajongs, etc.

Another visibly exasperated local said, "My ancestors had been here, but it's extremely sad. Even after traveling to places to get our names in the NRC, some of the family members are excluded. This time also, the same has happened. If the father's name is there, the son's name is not, it's the fault of the authorities. As poor people, some of our documents were damaged."

"We were provided with land to build homes, the documents are there in the circle office. We tried to contact the officers but they harassed us, they conspired against us and never returned our documents. About 40-45% people are excluded from NRC. Koch, Hajong, Bodo, Bengali and Lalung, all communities live here", he added.

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