NRC final draft: Govt did a tardy job, says Rahul

After the final draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was released earlier today, Congress President Rahul Gandhi dubbed the execution of the critical and highly sensitive exercise as tardy.

In a Facebook post, Rahul wrote that the manner in which the exercise was undertaken by the BJP governments both at the centre and in Assam, "leaves much to be desired."

He said, "The National Register of Citizens (NRC) was initiated by the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) under Manmohan Singh Ji to fulfill the commitment made in the Assam Accord of 1985. However, the manner in which this exercise has been undertaken by the BJP Governments at the centre and in the State of Assam leaves much to be desired."

Rahul added, "There are reports pouring in from all corners of Assam of Indian citizens finding their names missing in the draft NRC, creating massive insecurity in the state. Clearly, after spending close to 1,200 crores, the execution of this critical and highly sensitive exercise has been tardy. The Government must move swiftly to resolve this crisis."

Lastly, he urged his party members to maintain peace and help those who did not receive justice.

Calling the NRC final draft as the 'brainchild' of the Congress government, Former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said, "40 lakh people whose names have been excluded should not worry. They will get a chance. The NRC is to find out the number of foreigners in Assam."

He added that as long as the names were mentioned in the voters' list, all were considered the citizens of India.

Echoing Gogoi's sentiments, All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) President Badruddin Ajmal underscored that those whose names were not mentioned in the list need not be scared.

Thanking Supreme Court (SC) for intervening in the matter, he added, "We don't want to be called as Bangladeshis. We want to be identified as Indians. We are thankful to the SC that it intervened in the matter. The NRC implementing agency was under Assam government that had people from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). They have tried to remove names of people belonging to minorities."

The draft list, which was released today, has left out nearly 40 lakh people in Assam incorporating names of 2.89 crore people out of 3.29 crore applicants. The list has been updated for the first time since 1951, to account for illegal migration from nearby Bangladesh.

Following the release of the list, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh assured that no coercive action would be taken against those whose names are not mentioned in the final draft list.