Deportation and detention: 3 million face statelessness in Assam
- More than three million people are at risk of being left stateless in India’s northeastern state of Assam in a crisis that is being compared to the plight of the Rohingya in Myanmar
More than three million people are facing statelessness in India’s northeast, with minority Bengali Muslims and Hindus fearing deportation and detention, in a crisis that is being compared to the plight of the Rohingya in Myanmar.
With a December 15 deadline for inclusion in Assam state’s National Register of Citizens (NRC) fast approaching, about three and a half million Bengali Hindus and Muslims could be left without citizenship as they lack documentary evidence for their claims.
The register is being updated as part of the Indian government’s efforts to clamp down on illegal immigration from Bangladesh, following an explosion in anti-migrant sentiment in the border state of Assam.
Although the Hindu nationalist government has said that Hindu migrants from Bangladesh should be protected, it has called for the expulsion of Muslims who are found to be illegal.
Under an amendment proposed by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, citizenship would be granted only to Hindus and other non-Muslim minorities who migrated from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
