National Register Of Citizen (NRC) : All you need to know

When was NRC Started?

The National Register of Citizens (NRC) is the register containing names of Indian Citizens. The only time that a National Register of Citizens (NRC) was prepared was in 1951 when after the conduct of the Census of 1951, the NRC was prepared by recording particulars of all the persons enumerated during that Census.

What is current NRC exercise?

The 1951 NRC list has been updated for Assam, which has had a longstanding foreigner problem, to remove out illegal migrants and save further inflow. The updating process of NRC started in the year 2013 under the strict monitoring and supervision of the Supreme Court of India.


What are the possibilities of NRC implementation in other states?

As on Oct 2019, NRC is being implemented in Assam only. However the possibilities of NRC implementation in other Indian states in near future cannot be ruled out. The statements by BJP government show that implementing NRC all over India is in BJP priority list. The union home minister Amit Shah further clarified that NRC will be implemented in West Bengal if BJP form a government there.

Should Muslims worry about NRC?

The answer is both Yes and No for legal Indian Muslim residents.

The Union Home minister Amit Shah clearly stated that Non-Muslims (Hindu, Sikh, Christian, and Buddhist) need not to worry because they will be accorded Indian citizenship before NRC with the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. The statement made it clear that only Muslims citizens will suffer if unable to prove their citizenship in absence of required documents.

If you have all necessary documents (see the list below) available to prove your citizenship then there are absolutely no need to worry.

If you don’t have necessary documents (see the list below) in place to prove your citizenship then it’s time to act quickly. Please get all your documents in place before it’s too late. The rush may be unprecedented once NRC exercise kicked off for your state.

Which documents are acceptable for NRC?

The following documents are acceptable for NRC in Assam. The document requirement may be a little different for other states when NRC implemented. However, March 25, 1971 criteria may be there for all Indian states adjacent to Bangladesh.

There will be two requirements for inclusion of names of any person in updated NRC–

List A Documents:

The first requirement is collection of ANY ONE of the following documents of List A issued before midnight of 24th March, 1971 where name of self or ancestor* appears (to prove residence in Assam up to midnight of 24th March, 1971).

(1)   1951 NRC OR
(2)   Electoral Roll(s) up to 24th March 1971 (midnight) OR
(3)   Land & Tenancy Records OR
(4)   Citizenship Certificate OR
(5)   Permanent Residential Certificate OR
(6)   Refugee Registration Certificate OR
(7)   Passport OR
(8)   LIC OR
(9)   Any Govt. issued License/Certificate OR
(10)           Govt. Service/ Employment Certificate OR
(11)           Bank/Post Office Accounts OR
(12)           Birth Certificate OR
(13)           Board/University Educational Certificate OR
(14)           Court Records/Processes.


List B Documents:

The Second requirement arises if name in any of the documents of List A is not of the applicant himself/herself but that of an ancestor, namely, father or mother or grandfather or grandmother or great grandfather or great grandmother (and so on) of the applicant. In such cases, the applicant shall have to submit documents as in List B below to establish relationship with such ancestor, i.e., father or mother or grandfather or grandmother or great grandfather or great grandmother etc. whose name appears in List A. Such documents shall have to be legally acceptable document which clearly proves such relationship.

(1)   Birth Certificate OR
(2)   Land document OR
(3)   Board/University Certificate OR
(4)   Bank/LIC/Post Office records OR
(5)   Circle Officer/GP Secretary Certificate in case of married women OR
(6)   Electoral Roll OR
(7)   Ration Card OR
(8)   Any other legally acceptable document


Points to remember

Providing any one of the documents of List A of ANY PERIOD up to midnight of 24th March, 1971 shall be enough to prove eligibility for inclusion in updated NRC.

What can be the consequences of not getting registered in NRC?

This will drag you to administrative / legal problems. You may receive a notice from foreigner tribunals to establish you Indian citizenship. If you cannot establish it, you may face deportation or jail as a stateless person.

Resources

• Pre-NRC Data Review: This document template has been released by Masjid E Taqwa, Bangalore. This will help you in validating all necessary documents which may be required for NRC. Click here to download Pre-NRC Data Review form

• List of Document: Click here to download the list of documents which are acceptable for NRC in Assam.