November 21st Editorial

21st November 2019

TOPIC:  Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant  provisions and basic structure. (Paper II)

Discuss the idea of  NRC being held across India

Introduction

The proposal for a nationwide National Register of Citizens (NRC) is worrisome on several counts. The government would also re-introduce the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) that envisages the grant of Indian citizenship to all refugees from minority communities in Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.

Drawbacks of the idea

• The inability to learn from the experience of carrying out the humongous exercise in Assam. 
• The Bill denies a benefit to Muslim minorities from other neighboring countries, including Myanmar where Rohingya Muslims face persecution. 
• Home Minister announced that the NRC process would be conducted in Assam again with the rest of the country.
• There is still no clarity on what the 19 lakh plus people outside the NRC could do. They are potentially stateless and at risk of “deportation”.
• Bangladesh refuses to acknowledge them.

NRC for the whole country

• If there is a lesson from Assam, it is that there is no right way of going through a process such as the NRC.
• There are genuine fears that a nationwide NRC will target Muslims.
• How such an exercise will be carried out is not yet known.
• In the case of Assam, there was a cut-off date after which all foreigners as per the Assam Accord were to be expelled. The Centre may come out with a cut-off for the nationwide NRC.

Conclusion

Given the dangers that lurk within such exercises, the government could abandon the nationwide NRC-CAB combination. Indians can certainly be spared this pain.