Citizens for Justice and Peace
NRC appeals will overwhelm Assam DLSAs: CJP to Guwahati HC Survey of 10 Assam DLSAs shows that they are woefully understaffed, under-trained and lack infrastructure to deal with deluge of appeals
02-Mar-2021
Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP), a human rights organisation that has been on the ground in Assam helping our fellow Indian citizens through various processes related to the National Register of Citizens (NRC), has now moved Guwahati High Court (previously Gauhati) demanding proper legal aid for those left out of the NRC. The final NRC published…
Inadequate legal aid for NRC excluded persons, CJP moves Guwahati HC Plea for robust infrastructure to deal with impending deluge of applicants at FTs
01-Mar-2021
Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) has filed a petition before Guwahati High Court (previously Gauhati HC) seeking directions to the state to formulate effective and robust modalities for legal aid in terms of having trained panels of lawyers and adequate front offices in light of the impending appeals to be filed before Foreigners Tribunals by people…
CJP Impact: 34th person walks out of Assam Detention Camp Banesa Bibi was released on conditional bail due to CJP’s efforts
06-Feb-2021
One more person has walked out of Assam’s infamous detention camps with CJP’s assistance, taking the tally to 34. Banesa Bibi was released on conditional bail from Kokrajhar detention camp after spending 2 years and 18 days behind bars. 58-year-old Banesa Bibi is a resident of Village no. 2 Dhupguri, Lungjhar that falls under the…
NRC for Assam: A flawed design A process with an inherent potential to exclude millions of genuine citizens
07-Jan-2021
The exercise for preparation and updating of NRC for the state of Assam was directed and also monitored by Supreme Court Bench consisting of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Rohinton Fali Nariman (in the ongoing matter, the judgement dated December 17, 2014 in the case of Assam Public Works Vs. Union of India & Ors (Writ…
Overcoming trauma together: CJP in Assam How we secured a widow’s release from a detention camp to complete her husband's post-death rituals
29-Dec-2020
It was a cold morning. I was awakened by my ringing mobile phone at 5.30 AM. I answered the phone as no one calls me this early given how it is well known that my work keeps me awake till late at night. In fact, I could only go to bed at 3.30 AM, that…
104-year-old ‘declared foreigner’ dies in Assam Arrested at 101, he spent 3 months in an Assam detention camp!
17-Dec-2020
Chandrahar Das, a registered refugee from Bangladesh, was declared ‘foreigner’ as the Dementia and Parkinson’s Disease afflicted man, arrested at the age of 101, could not recall when he crossed into the country! Over half a century ago, when Chandrahar Das was a young man, he fled Bangladesh and made his way to Assam via…
Excluded from NRC, Assam man flees, wife contemplates suicide! CJP steps in to help his impoverished family
19-Nov-2020
When the final National Register of Citizens (NRC) was published on August 31, 2019, Zabbar Ali’s name was missing from it. A resident of Mazabar village in flood-prone the Char area alongside the Brahmaputra in Barpeta, Zabbar Ali was devastated at the exclusion from the coveted list. Ali’s father Jalil Uddin Sheikh’s name not only…
Ailing septuagenarian being forced to appear before Assam FT! Seje Bala Ghosh is the daughter of a freedom fighter
06-Oct-2020
In March this year, we had brought to you the story of Seje Bala Ghosh, the daughter of a freedom fighter, who was served a notice to appear before a Foreigners’ Tribunal (FT) in Assam despite her name appearing in the final National Register of Citizens (NRC). CJP had taken up her case, but now…
Will issue NRC Rejection Slips only after Covid-19 is brought under control: Hitesh Dev Sarma But NRC State Coordinator can’t commit to timelines due to the pandemic
29-Aug-2020
On August 21, Hitesh Dev Sarma, the State Coordinator for the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, had issued a notification directing all Deputy Commissioners and District Registrars of Citizens Registration (DRCR) to ensure laptops and internet availability for Circle Officers who are to begin the quality check of speaking orders from September 1,…
Urgent plea: 10,000 masks needed for the Assam Community and CJP Team For those in Assam who are battling the citizenship crisis amid coronavirus
26-Mar-2020
CJP Assam team has been working day and night, helping people whose names have been excluded from the final NRC, with applications and documents. Even as all NRC related processes were put on hold by the Assam government in wake of the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, our team has soldiered on wearing masks and…