17, Apr 2020 | CJP Team

In a submission made before the Assam Assembly on July 29, 2019, Chandra Mohan Patowary, Minister of Industry and Transportation, revealed that as many as ten new detention centers are being planned across Assam, though the central government was yet to green-light the project. The submission was in response to a series of questions raised by MLA Zakir Hussain Sikdar.

Potowary submitted, “There are six temporary detention camps in Assam. Work of a permanent detention camp is going on in Matia, Goalpara. A proposal has already sent to the central government for building ten additional detention camps. But so far the central government has not given us the go ahead. These detention camps will be located in Sivasagar, Nagaon, Karimganj, Nalbari, Lakhimpur, Haflong, Guwahati, Barpeta, Goalpara and Tezpur.”

Now that the final NRC has been published, and 19,06,657 people have been excluded from the final list, CJP’s campaign has become even more focused. Our objective now, is to help these excluded people defend their citizenship before Foreigners’ Tribunals. For this we have already started conducting a series of workshops to train paralegals to assist people at FTs. We will also be publishing a multi-media training manual containing simplified aspects of legal procedure, evidentiary rules, and judicial precedents that will ensure the appeals filed against the NRC exclusions in the FTs are comprehensive and sound, both in fact and in law. This will assist our paralegals, lawyers and the wider community in Assam to negotiate this tortuous process. For this we need your continued support. Please donate now to help us help Assam. 

In response to questions about the number of declared foreigners and D-Voters, Potowary submitted, “Total 1,17,168 people are declared as foreigner in Assam till March, 2019. Total number of D voters are 1,13,738 as per the voter list on February 6, 2019.”

Potowary’s submission also includes a list of names of all people lodged in the various detention camps. The submission and the list may be viewed here.

Related:

CJP steps in to defend citizenship of freedom fighter’s daughter in Assam 

CJP in Action: Two men released from detention camp after CJP intervention