Sahitya Parishad president Hafiz Ahmed says it will also bring an end to the harassment in the name of Bangladeshi
By TwoCircles.net Staff reporter,
Guwahati: Hafiz Ahmed is the president of Char Chapori Sahitya Parishad (CCSP), a literary body of Assam. CCSP under the leadership of Ahmed has been involved in several works towards development of the downtrodden section of the society.
Ahmed and his colleagues have been working hard making people aware and helping them to fill up the forms of National Register of Citizens (NRC). The NRC is a document containing the names of Indian citizens prepared in 1951. Unique to the state of Assam, this document was prepared to distinguish Indian citizens from illegal migrants from then East Pakistan. The 1951 NRC certificate, along with the electoral roll in the voters’ list of 1966 and 1971, are the two important documents required to prove the citizenship in Assam, where propaganda about illegal Bangladeshi is rampant and often violent.
The ongoing NRC update process in Assam will enlist the names of genuine citizens based on NRC 1951 and electoral rolls up to midnight of March 24, 1971.
In an interview with TwoCircles.net, Ahmed shared his experience of the NRC update process. Excerpts:
Q. As you have been actively involved in the process of updating the NRC by making people aware in different areas, how do you evaluate the scenario?
A: The updating process has brought different forms of reactions among different communities. The Muslims, particularly the Muslim of the Bengal origin, have welcomed the process. Different organizations of this community like All Assam Minority Students Union (AAMSU), CCSP and Jamiat have been working to make people aware about the process. It is because of the fact that the people of this community have been tortured and killed in the name of Bangladeshis time and again and through the updation of NRC, they will be able to prove their citizenship.
The leadership of this community wants the community to get rid of the Bangladeshi tag. The Bengali Hindu community has already protested the present process as they are afraid that many people of their community may be proved as foreigners. The Assamese Hindu and Muslim communities are not much interested in the process. Most of them want that their names should be included in the NRC without any document. So is the case with the tribal people.
Q. Which are the areas the state government should focus to make the process smoother for the greater welfare of the state?
A: First of all, I think the government should appoint resource persons in every village to fill up the forms within a week. Besides, the government official should be made more active and dedicated. It has been seen that some of the top officials who have been entrusted with NRC updating duty are not taking their duty seriously. Same is the case with the lower level officials.
Until and unless the officials work properly and seriously like election duty, the process will only be partially successful.
Then there are occasions like the illiterate minor boys and girls who have never been to school or do not have birth certificate, how they will prove their linkage with their father? I think that if the citizenship of the parents is proved, the minor children should not be asked for any proof.
Another important point which I would like to make here is that the government should ensure that every officials employed in the updation process work impartially.
These are the main areas where the government should focus to make the process a success.
Q. When the process is on, there are many individuals and organizations that have raised different issues. What do you feel about it?
A: Different organizations and persons including the Chief minister and leaders of different political parties are expressing their views. BJP wants that every Bengali Hindu refugees coming to India up to December, 2014 should be included in the NRC. We oppose it. What we believe is that the foreigners should and must not be divided on the basis of religion. Congress is also saying the same thing as they need the votes of Bengalis. We cannot allow Assam to be the dumping ground for the foreigners.
People and individuals may say what they like, but the NRC should include the names of those people only who or whose forefathers have been living in Assam up to 1971.
Q. What will the state gain if the process of updating the NRC is completed (faster)?
A: If the process is completed, I think the problem of foreigners will be solved at least to some extent. The communal organizations will no longer be able to brand anybody as foreigner. The importance of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) and AAMSU will diminish. If the foreigners’ problem is solved, people will be able to remain united and fight for their basic rights. Peace may prevail and this will help to execute the development works smoothly.
Q. We have also seen that a former Assam minister has said that the people belonging to different tribal communities should be included in the NRC without following the norms. How logical is that?
A: We are sorry that we cannot agree with the minister. Are there two kinds of citizens in Assam? During the ethnic cleansing of 2012, Hagrama Basumatari told media that even Bodos have migrated from Bangladesh. What about these tribal people? Are their names to be included as they are tribal? Former minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also demanded that the indigenous people should be included in the NRC without any proof. Now who are indigenous people?
Just the surnames or their titles cannot prove that they are native. Even the Sarmas, Goswamis have also migrated from Bangladesh and Nepal. We have seen how Basak has become Baishya and then there are common titles Das, Mazumder and Chakravarty among others.
Regarding the people of other states also we have some objections, particularly, those who produce certificates of citizenship from West Bengal and Tripura.
Q. Besides, Assam governor PB Acharya has even said that ‘Hindu Refugees’ should also be included in the list.
A: The governor has proved himself to be an agent of RSS so he has suggested that all the Bengali Hindu refugees should be included. This cannot be supported at any cost. BJP may get votes by including them, but their inclusion will lead the Assamese nationality to doom.
Q. Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has issued a statement so that all the names are featured in the electoral roll should be included in the NRC. What you have to say?
A: This is again ridiculous, coming from someone like the chief of the state. We cannot support this at any cost. The NRC updation process should be continued as directed by the Supreme Court. There is no point of making such statements which might delay the process or create some unnecessary troubles.