Supreme Court Shields Assam’s Declared Foreigners, Stresses Fair Legal Process

Supreme Court Stresses Fair Process, Grants Relief to Individuals Declared Foreigners in Assam

The Supreme Court on Monday underscored that the process of determining a person’s citizenship—or declaring them a foreigner—must be conducted in a fair and just manner, while granting interim relief to several individuals who had been declared foreigners by tribunals in Assam.

A Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta set aside the orders passed by the Foreigners Tribunals and the Gauhati High Court, directing that the cases be heard afresh. The court also ruled that no coercive action should be taken against the appellants until the tribunals complete a fresh adjudication following due process.

Petitioners Challenged Tribunal Orders

The appeals were filed by Sabitri Dey, Ajbahar Ali, Md Akbar Ali, Abeda Khatun and Anowara Khatun, who argued that they had been declared foreigners on technical discrepancies rather than substantive evidence.

According to the petitioners, the tribunal orders relied on minor inconsistencies such as spelling variations, typographical errors and slight mismatches in names appearing in old electoral rolls and other documents.

Court Does Not Rule on Citizenship

While granting relief, the Supreme Court clarified that it had not examined the evidence to determine whether the appellants are Indian citizens.

Instead, the Bench held that the focus of its decision was to ensure that proceedings before the Foreigners Tribunals adhere to the principles of fairness and natural justice, giving individuals a proper opportunity to present their case before any decision affecting their citizenship is made.

The matter will now return to the concerned tribunals for fresh consideration in accordance with law, with the petitioners protected from coercive action until the proceedings are concluded.