The Hindu : National : Call for fair procedure to determine nationality

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 09, 2005

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National

Call for fair procedure to determine nationality

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, FEB. 8. For about a month, Jamal Wahid (name changed) and his two children were detained by the police and worried relatives moved heaven and earth to prove his nationality. Suspected of being an illegal Bangladeshi immigrant, Jamal, a resident of Nizamuddin Basti for over 20 years, "suffered" in detention and even now lives under the threat of deportation.

Bringing to light such incidents is a report "Democracy, Citizens and Migrants: Nationalism in the Era of Globalisation" released here today. Put together by the Citizen's Campaign for Preserving Democracy, it demands a fair and just procedure for determining nationality. "Raids are held in the middle of the night. How do you make the judgment about who is a Bangladeshi and who is an Indian? From what we learnt during our investigation is that the police does not accept any documentary proof unless it is land papers. Proofs like ration cards, election cards and the rest are not accepted. In fact, many times, they are torn up so that no proof remains. The only other `paper' that works is money. People are constantly harassed and deported and shockingly, many among those are Indians," claimed lawyer Vrinda Grover.

The report also asks for the establishment of a detention centre in accordance with national and international standards and the closure of the night shelter and wedding hall at Shahazada Bagh that is being misused as a detention centre. It also demands that documents issued by State and Central agencies be regarded as valid documents of citizenship. It further states that deportation from Indian territory should be in compliance with international law and diplomatic protocol.

`Extend IMDT Act'

It also demands that the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, 1983 — that envisages the constitution of tribunals, composed of judicial officers to determine whether a person is an illegal immigrant or not — be extended to the capital and other States as well.

Proposing to place the report before the State, the former Delhi High Court Chief Justice, Rajinder Sachar, said: "The State can nominate someone to decide who is an illegal person. That decision should not be with the government." On a personal note he added: "If I had to prove through documentation that I was a citizen of India, it would have been impossible. I came from Lahore at the time of Independence. I was registered as a lawyer in Lahore and it is on the basis of that registration that I could practise here. But if that is not accepted, what proof can I give?"

Promising to take up the matter, a member of the Planning Commission, Syeda S. Hameed, said: "These are not stories, these are realities. There is no reason why the Government would not take up the issue since there is so much of truth in this. We have to ensure that the complainant and the judge are not the same person and also that a person is innocent until proven guilty."

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