Guwahati : The flip flop by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on the infiltration issue has angered the Opposition, mainly the AGP and BJP besides, the All Assam Students Union (AASU). Gogoi was seen taking a tougher stand on the issue last week in the Assembly but last night made light of a Supreme Court directive on the issue, causing uproar in the state.
Reacting to the apex court's remarks on the foreigners' issue of Thursday, the chief minister today said that there were many states which had more illegal Bangladeshi population than Assam. The Supreme Court had expressed dismay at the lack of initiative to drive out illegal migrants.
Detailing the measures taken by his government to tackle the problem, he said because of the pressure on land and lack of employment, illegal migrants were not interested to stay in the state. This is in contrast to his earlier stand when he had talked of setting up detention camps for detected illegal migrants in the state. The Congress government, which has been doing a tightrope walk on the issue, is in the process of updating a National Register of Citizen (NRC).
This has not gone done well with the Opposition and the AASU. ''This is the real Congress. They cannot stay in power without the help of the Bangladeshi voters,'' said BJP national vice-president Bijoya Chakravarty. The court had also sought a status report on the deportation of illegal Bangladeshi migrants. It was categorical in expressing its displeasure over the manner in which the government had proceeded so far at a snail's pace in giving effect to its order for identification of illegal migrants in Assam through adequate number of tribunals under the Foreigners Act.
''Illegal migrants appear to get more facility than Indian nationals. It has become very difficult to control their increasing numbers,'' observed a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan after hearing counsel O P Saxena and C D Singh appearing for PIL petitioner. ''Today Assam government is doing more to protect the Bangladeshis than its own citizens,'' rued AASU adviser Dr Samujjla Kr Bhattacharrya from Sivsagar.
Dealing with two PILs on the issue, the Bench had asked additional Solicitor General Amarendra Saran questions on the number of tribunals set up till date and the progress in identification of illegal migrants and their deportation. The Bench had also remembered in time the 2006 affidavit of the Centre promising implementation of a National Citizens' Register and issuance of Multi-Purpose Photo I-Cards to citizens to make detection of illegal migrants easier.
In a 2005 judgment, the apex court had termed that Assam virtually faced external aggression and the Centre had failed to discharge its duties under Article 355 of the Constitution to protect a state from such a situation, which had arisen due to massive influx of illegal migrants from Bangladesh, virtually changing the demographic pattern in many districts of the north-eastern state. Granting eight weeks to the Centre to file a fresh status report, the Bench asked it to also detail the progress made in fencing the Indo-Bangla border, which is a virtual reiteration of its January 5, 2007 order.
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