Sanchita Chatterjee, BS News Agency: Documents from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) do not serve as proof of citizenship. Such documents will not be accepted as evidence of an individual's citizenship—a point the Guwahati High Court has once again clarified. Furthermore, in its observations, the Court noted that even if one individual is deemed a 'foreigner,' other members of their family cannot automatically be labeled as such. Unless there are separate cases pending against them individually, they cannot be implicated in such matters.
**High Court Delivers Significant Verdict During Case Hearing**
In a case stemming from an incident that occurred many years ago, the petitioner, Maya Das, submitted to the Guwahati High Court that Nibararan Chandra Das was her father. She attempted to prove her Indian citizenship—and thus her identity—by presenting entries from the 1965 voter list and the NRC documents from the following year, 1966. At that time, in an effort to substantiate her filial relationship with her father, she had submitted various documents, including school certificates and even a certificate issued by the Village Panchayat. However, despite these submissions, the Foreigners Tribunal in Silchar categorically declared her to be a 'foreigner.' The Tribunal also issued a ruling regarding the status of her family members. Following this sequence of events, Maya Das filed a direct petition with the Guwahati High Court. In her plea to the Court, Maya Das asserted that she had submitted every relevant document at her disposal, and that the authenticity of these documents had not been contested. Conversely, the State argued that, pursuant to Section 9 of the 1946 Act, the onus of proving Indian citizenship rests entirely upon the petitioner; should the petitioner fail to do so, it constitutes a failure on their part.
On Tuesday, the Guwahati High Court delivered its verdict in this very case. During the hearing, the Court observed that the author of the school certificate submitted by the petitioner had not been produced before the Court. Consequently, the Court ruled that, in this specific instance, the said document could not be accepted as valid proof. Furthermore, the Court noted that the certificate issued by the Village Panchayat merely served to confirm the fact of her marriage, but did not establish the paternal relationship she claimed. Alongside these observations, the Justices declared the Tribunal's decision—which had labeled the petitioner and her family members as 'foreigners'—to be legally flawed. Concurrently, the ruling issued by the Tribunal regarding the petitioner's children was set aside. The Court explicitly stated that even if the petitioner is a foreigner, their family members cannot be classified as such. In this matter, the administration is granted the liberty to file a fresh, separate case if deemed necessary. Furthermore, the High Court observed that NRC documents do not constitute proof of Indian citizenship.