Supreme Court Dismisses Petition Against Assam's Deportation Policy
Supreme Court's Ruling on Assam's Deportation Practices
On Monday, the Supreme Court declined to hear a petition that contested the Assam government's actions of deporting individuals identified as foreigners to Bangladesh, as reported by a legal news outlet.
A panel comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and SC Sharma reviewed the case brought forth by the All BTC Minority Students Union. The petition alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was unlawfully sending Indian citizens to Bangladesh under the pretext of deporting undocumented migrants.
The bench inquired why the matter was not being addressed in the Gauhati High Court. Advocate Sanjay Hegde, representing the union, explained that the petition was based on a prior Supreme Court ruling.
Hegde indicated that the union would withdraw the petition and pursue the matter in the High Court, which the Supreme Court permitted.
This petition emerged amid a notable increase in detentions of declared foreigners in Assam since May 23, with families expressing concern over the lack of information regarding their missing relatives. Some families have reportedly recognized their loved ones in videos from Bangladesh, claiming they were forcibly sent across the border.
Previously, it was reported that Khairul Islam, a former teacher from Morigaon district whose citizenship case was pending in the Supreme Court, was taken from the Matia detention center and expelled near the Bangladesh border on May 27.
In a video captured by journalist Mostafuzur Tara from Bangladesh's Rangpur division, Islam stated that he was among 14 individuals 'pushed' into Bangladesh by India's Border Security Force on that morning.
Islam and the others were reportedly left in no man's land between the two nations.
Three days later, Assam's Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma acknowledged the practice of 'pushing back' individuals declared as foreigners by the Foreigners Tribunals to Bangladesh. He asserted that this action was in line with directives from the Supreme Court issued in February.
On February 4, the Supreme Court instructed the Assam government to initiate the deportation process for foreign nationals held in detention centers without delay.
The court emphasized that foreign nationals could be deported even without a specified address, stating, 'You cannot continue to detain them indefinitely... Once they are identified as foreigners, they should be deported immediately.'
Foreigners Tribunals in Assam serve as quasi-judicial entities that evaluate citizenship matters. According to the Assam Accord, only those residing in the state before March 25, 1971, or their descendants, are eligible for Indian citizenship.
However, these tribunals have faced accusations of bias and arbitrariness, often declaring individuals as foreigners based on minor errors, insufficient documentation, or lapses in memory.
The All BTC Minority Students Union's petition claimed that following the February 4 order, the Assam government had allegedly initiated a broad and indiscriminate campaign to detain and deport individuals suspected of being foreigners, even without formal declarations from the Foreigners Tribunals or the exhaustion of legal options.
The petition referenced multiple reports of individuals being 'pushed' into Bangladesh, indicating a troubling trend of deportations executed by the Assam Police and administrative authorities through informal 'push back' methods, lacking judicial oversight and violating constitutional safeguards.