A lot of debate has been going on around the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam. There is definitely a question as to what will happen after the recognition of citizens. But, Deep Dive with Abhinav Khare points out that what we should really question is the mentality of our political leaders who question this legal process of recognizing citizens.

 

This new NRC is the revision of the 1951 list. If a person has been residing in Assam prior to March 25, 1971, he or she shall be deemed as a resident. The significance of the date is that; it was on that day that Pakistan had launched its Operation Searchlight against the then East Bengal.

The difference in the number of Assamese speaking people had decreased 10% from  1991 to 2011. From 2001 to 2011, the population of Hindus have declined and the population of Muslims have increased by the same number, 3%. All of this has been attributed to the rising infiltration from Bangladesh.

The final list of the NRC was released on August 31, 2019, where around 20 lakh people have been left out. But the government has vowed to provide all of them with legal access to defend their case.

Also read: Deep Dive with Abhinav Khare: Steep fines for traffic violation; better be safe than sorry

The NRC is beneficial for the country in three ways:

First, it shall help us identify all illegal migrants, which is no easy feat. It shall give the government an estimate of the illegal Bangladeshis in the country.

Second, since they shall not be receiving any citizenship benefits including voting rights and this shall be beneficial as henceforth, no political motives shall dictate security concerns here.

Third, this move sends out a message loud and clear that no illegal immigrants are welcome in India.

Illegal immigration creates both financial and security threats to a country and this long delay in dealing with this problem has ensured that there is no permanent solution to this, at least immediately. This NRC will not lead to immediate expulsion of all illegal immigrants from  the country, but this shall act as a huge deterrent. This will ensure that no immigrant comes and takes refuge in India feeling that our politicians will favour them even at the cost of our security!

About Abhinav Khare

Abhinav Khare is the CEO of AsiaNetNews Network and also the host of a daily show named Deep Dive with AK. AsiaNetNews is a leading media group of south India with highly valuable brands like AsiaNetNews, Suvarna News, Kannada Prabha, IndigoMusic, Indigo Radio, MyNation, NewsFast, IndigoXP Music lounges. 

He is a proud father of two beautiful daughters and resides in Bengaluru with his loving family and a lifetime collection of books and gadgets. An avid traveller, he has already pinged more than hundred cities from 5 major continents around the globe. 

A tech entrepreneur, who is passionate about policy, technology, economy and philosophy from ancient India. His favourite pastime is to research synergy between these facets of society. He earned his qualifications from the top 10 global universities; an MS Engineering from the ETH Zurich and an MBA Finance from the London Business School.