03, Feb 2020 | CJP Team

Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) was awarded for the work in Assam, under the Governance and Livelihood category at the eNGO challenge 2019-20 for extending help and support to the people of Assam during the National Register of Citizens (NRC) process. The award ceremony took place at the Eros hotel in New Delhi.

The eNGO challenge is a platform to enable, empower & recognise grassroots organisations for their excellence. It is aimed to recognise, facilitate and award organisations that have done some exceptional work with communities and subjects using any kind of new age tools.

Citizens for Justice and Peace has been involved in a three-year long volunteer-led movement in Assam where the CJP for Assam Initiative has already helped 10 lakh people (10,00,000) fill in their NRC forms. These are persons from the most marginalised sections, disempowered and living in the most far-flung areas. CJP has helped release some people from detention camps, counseled suicidal citizens and filed intervention applications in the Supreme Court. Now we are using this invaluable field experience with 700 volunteers in Assam to generate literature on the issue of an all India NRC and conduct nationwide trainings!

CJP has made a multi-faceted intervention in Assam to help ensure that the maximum number of claims’ forms are filled.

1. We ran a toll free CJP NRC Helpline, available in English, Hindi, Assamese and Bengali. Those requiring assistance with filing their claims, objections or corrections, or any other clarification or help, have been calling to speak with one of our Volunteer Motivators, who helps them through the process. We received a huge response on our helpline, and were able to provide help to thousands of people across Assam.
2. Our dedicated volunteers are also active on the ground in 33 districts across Assam, going from village to village to organise people – Train the Affected Communities into a Rights and Entitlement Discourse so that they, who are women, children, elderly all from extremely disenfranchised communities are empowered and assisted to (with dignity) interact with government and bureaucracy.
3. They have created awareness about the Claims and Objections process, as well as the correct documentation required for filing claims via door-to-door contact, our volunteers have been able to aid and counsel those facing this crisis, to help them make their claims for inclusion in the NRC.
4. Monitoring Team to Nagrik Seva Kendras-NSKs (proposed) in end May-early June 2019 to generate interest and interrogation into the NRC “correction process.
5. Conceptualisation and Participation in Peoples/Citizens Tribunal on Assam (proposed for post August 2019)
6. We have made available Public Resources Via a Microsite
7. Created awareness on the issue via Social Media
8. CJP’s intrepid journalistic work continues to track and publish consistent videos and articles that highlight the Humanitarian Crisis in Assam as well as the CJP for Assam Initiative.
9. Awareness via Meetings, CJP held a tribunal in Mumbai on Women Prisoners highlighting cases of Women in Detention camps
10. With the dedication of our Assam Team we have been able to establish a local office and Research Centre in Guwahati
11. CJP has also intervened in the Courts to ensure that the Citizenship process adheres to fundamental Constitutional norms and any attempts to introduce malfeasance into the process, are thwarted. After this initial spade work of filling in Claims before the NRC (hopefully minimising the need for legal cases), will begin series of CJP’s Legal Actions in Foreigners Tribunals (FTs), in the Guwahati High Court and the Supreme Court of India, in both, class action suits as also individual petitions.

CJP is also committed in taking forward issues apart from the NRC issue that has recently seen exacerbation. The slow burn caused by the DF (Declared Foreigners) issue where the Assam Border Police has been for decades implicated and the “D” Voter (Doubtful Voter) where the Election Commission (EC) has been drawn in are also related issues that CJP is giving attention to.

CJP has been well recognised for its fearless and consistent legal initiative post the Gujarat carnage of 2002. Drawing from this experience, CJP is now set to create a network of lawyers from the Foreigner Tribunals (FTs) upwards to the Guwahati HC and SC.