The Centre on January 6th, 2020 told the Supreme Court that children who have been excluded from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, but whose parents have been granted citizenship under the same, shall not be sent to detention centres.

The names of 3,11,21,004 persons were found eligible and 19,06,657 persons were excluded from the final NRC list including those who did not submit claims. The final list was published by the Assam government on August 31st, 2019.

Political parties, several organisations have vociferously expressed their unhappiness with the final exclusion figures. They claimed that a large number of indigenous people were excluded from the final NRC list.

Attorney General for India KK Venugopal told the Bench of Chief Justice of India SA Bobde and Justices BR Gavai and Surya Kant submitted an undertaking stating that these families will not be separated, the Bar and Bench reported.

“I cannot conceive children being sent to detention centres and being separated from their families. Children whose parents have been granted citizenship will not be sent to detention centres,” Venugopal mentioned in the undertaking.

The apex court further issued a notice to the Union of India and the State of Assam on this plea and sought a reply within four weeks.

Photo credit: /nrcassam