In Re Section 6a Of The Citizenship Act 1955 vs. Union Of India Ministry Of Home Affairs Secretary
AI Summary
In a significant intervention, the Supreme Court of India expressed strong dissatisfaction with the Union and Assam State governments over delays in implementing critical border security measures and updating the National Register of Citizens. The Court appointed a Senior Advocate as a Commissioner to inspect the ground reality of border fencing and set strict timelines for various authorities, including the Gauhati High Court, to expedite the operationalization of Foreigners Tribunals, underscoring the urgent need to address issues impacting fundamental rights in Assam.
Case Identifiers
Petitioner's Counsel
Respondent's Counsel
eCourtsIndia AITM
Brief Facts Summary
The Supreme Court was seized of multiple writ petitions concerning border management and citizenship issues in Assam. It reviewed affidavits from the Union and State of Assam concerning the implementation of border fencing, roads, and patrolling. The Court noted governmental delays in these areas and the lack of responses to queries from the State Coordinator for the NRC. Furthermore, the Gauhati High Court had not fulfilled its task of recommending members for Foreigners Tribunals. The Court decided to convert an application for directions into a writ petition and initiated several direct measures to address the identified non-compliance and delays.
Timeline of Events
Filing of WP(C) No. 274/2009 (and potentially other related cases).
Filing of WP(C) No. 562/2012.
Filing of WP(C) No. 876/2014.
State Coordinator, NRC, Assam, raised queries to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Registrar General of India, which remained unanswered.
Current order passed; I.A. No. 13 of 2015 converted into a writ petition, notice issued. Shri Upamanyu Hazarika appointed as Commissioner. Directions issued to various authorities.
Interim report from the Court-appointed Commissioner expected.
Final report from the Court-appointed Commissioner expected.
Next hearing date for all cases. Ministry of Home Affairs and Registrar General of India to respond to NRC State Coordinator's queries, and replies to be placed before the Court.
Gauhati High Court to have its list of recommendees for Foreigners Tribunals ready.
Government of Assam to ensure Foreigners Tribunals are operational with requisite infrastructure and appointments.
Key Factual Findings
The Union Government and the State Government of Assam have been dragging their feet in the matter of implementation of border fencing, construction of border roads, night patrolling, flood-lights, etc.
Source: Current Court Finding
Queries raised by the State Coordinator, NRC, Assam in February 2015, addressed to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Registrar General of India, have unfortunately received no response.
Source: Current Court Finding/Recited from Affidavit of State Coordinator
The Gauhati High Court has not been able to perform its task of recommending suitable persons for appointment as Chairperson and Members of the Foreigners Tribunal, including the 64 proposed Tribunals.
Source: Current Court Finding
Primary Legal Issues
Secondary Legal Issues
Statutes Applied
Petitioner's Arguments
The petitioners are aggrieved by the perceived delays and lack of effective implementation by the Union and State governments concerning border security measures and the update of the National Register of Citizens, leading to continued concerns over illegal immigration and its impact on the region and fundamental rights of citizens.
Respondent's Arguments
The Union and State of Assam had filed affidavits detailing their efforts towards border infrastructure and NRC implementation. However, the Court was not satisfied with the pace or completeness of these reported efforts, indicating a gap between stated actions and actual progress on the ground.
Court's Reasoning
The Court found a clear impression of the Union and State governments 'dragging their feet' regarding the implementation of previous orders on border fencing and related infrastructure. It noted the lack of response from central authorities to the NRC Coordinator's crucial queries and the Gauhati High Court's failure to recommend suitable persons for the Foreigners Tribunals. Given the 'considerable public importance' and potential impact on 'fundamental rights of a large number of citizens,' the Court exercised its constitutional powers to intervene, issue specific directions, appoint a Commissioner for fact-finding, and set stringent timelines to ensure compliance and progress.
- Emphasis on effective governance and compliance with judicial directives
- Protection of fundamental rights
- Active judicial oversight in matters of public interest
- Accountability of executive and subordinate judicial bodies
Specific Directions
- 1.I.A. No.13 of 2015 is converted into a writ application under Article 32 of the Constitution of India, and notice is issued therein returnable on 14th July, 2015.
- 2.The State of Assam as well as Union of India are directed to file their responses to the converted writ petition.
- 3.Shri Upamanyu Hazarika, Senior Advocate, is appointed as Commissioner to visit the Indo-Bangla Border through Assam and report his findings, correlating them with affidavits filed by Union of India and State of Assam.
- 4.Union Government (Ministry of Home Affairs) is directed to make available a fund of Rs.5,00,000/- to the Court appointed Commissioner.
- 5.The Commissioner is expected to submit an interim report within three weeks and a final report on or before 30th June, 2015.
- 6.Ministry of Home Affairs and Registrar General of India are directed to respond to the queries of Shri Prateek Hajela, State Coordinator, NRC, Assam.
- 7.The learned State Coordinator will place the replies of the two authorities before the Court on 14th July, 2015.
- 8.Gauhati High Court is directed under Article 142 of the Constitution of India to take prompt steps and have its list of recommendees for Chairperson and Members of Foreigners Tribunals ready for consideration by the Government within 45 days.
- 9.Government of Assam is directed to provide requisite infrastructure and make necessary appointments for Foreigners Tribunals by 10th August, 2015, ensuring they get operational.
- 10.No orders are called for in I.A. No.11/2015 in WP(C) NO.274 OF 2009 at this stage.
- 11.Service of notice on the respondents for WP(C) NO.876/2014 and WP(C) NO.867/2015 may be served through the Standing Counsel of the respective State.
- 12.All these cases be listed on 14th July, 2015.
- 13.The Hon'ble the Chief Justice of India is requested to consider making this Bench available on 14th July, 2015 for the whole day.
Precedential Assessment
Persuasive (Procedural)
This order primarily provides procedural directions, sets timelines, and enforces compliance in an ongoing litigation, rather than establishing new substantive legal principles. Its persuasive value lies in demonstrating the Supreme Court's approach to executive and judicial inaction.
Tips for Legal Practice
Legal Tags
Disclaimer: eCourtsIndia (ECI) is not a lawyer and this analysis is generated by ECI AI, it might make mistakes. This is not a legal advice. Please consult with a qualified legal professional for matters requiring legal expertise.
Order Issued After Hearing
Purpose:
Case Registered
Listed On:
3 Jul 2009
Original Order Copy
Get a certified copy of this order
Order Text
ITEM NO.301 COURT NO.8 SECTION X S U P R E M E C O U R T O F I N D I A REVISED RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Writ Petition(s)(Civil) No(s). 562/2012 ASSAM SANMILITA MAHASANGHA & ORS. Petitioner(s) VERSUS UNION OF INDIA & ORS. Respondent(s) (With application for directions and office report) WITH W.P.(C) No. 876/2014 (With appln.(s) for stay and Office Report) W.P.(C) No. 274/2009 (With appln.(s) for further directions and appln.(s) for intervention and appln.(s) for impleadment and Office Report) Date : 13/05/2015 These petitions were called on for hearing today. CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RANJAN GOGOI HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ROHINTON FALI NARIMAN For Petitioner(s) Mr. Manish Goswami, Adv. Mr. Rameshwar Prasad Goyal,Adv. Mr. Somiran Sharma,Adv. Mr. Arvind Kumar Sharma,Adv. Ms. Ankita Sharma, Adv. For Respondent(s) Mr. N.K. Kaul, ASG Mr. Raghavendra M. Bajaj, Adv. Ms. Sushma Suri, Adv. Mr. Sanyat Lodha, Adv. Mr. Shiv Mangal Sharma, Adv. Ms. Rashmi Malhotra, Adv. Mr. Rakesh Khanna, Sr. Adv. Mr. Milan Laskar, Adv. Mohd. Parvez Dabas, Adv. Digitally signed by Meenakshi Kohli Date: 2015.05.15 11:22:09 IST Reason: Signature Not Verified
Mr. Syed Mehdi Imam,Adv. Mr. Shibashish Misra,Adv. Mr. Anas Tanwir, Adv. Mr. Abdul Qadir Abbasi, Adv. Mr. Abdul Qadir, Adv. Mr. G. Jawed, Adv. Mr. Fuzail Ahmad Ayyubi,Adv. Mr. Mohan Pandey,Adv. Mr. Shakil Ahmed Syed,Adv. Mr. Shadan Farasat,Adv. Mr. Joydeep Gupta, Sr. Adv. Ms. Krishna S., AAG Mr. Avijit Roy, Adv. Ms. Kankana Arandhara, Adv. For M/s Corporate Law Group Mr. B. Krishna Prasad,Adv. Mr. Somiran Sharma,Adv. Mr. Mohit D. Ram,Adv. Mr. Rajeev Dubey, Adv. Mr. Ravi Prakash Mehrotra,Adv. Mr. Anip Sachthey,Adv. Mr. Mohit Paul, Adv. Ms. Shagun Malta, Adv. Mr. S.N.Terdal, Adv. Mr. G.S. Chatterjee, Adv. Mr. Siddharth Bhatnagar, Adv. Mr. Sidharth Mohan, Adv. Mr. Nirnimesh Dube, Adv. Mr. Prateek Jalan, Adv. Ms. Malvika Trivedi, Adv. Mr. Rahul K., Adv. Mr. Ankit Yadav, Adv. Mr. T. Mahipal, Adv.
Mr. Balasubramaniam, Adv. Mr. K.V. Jagdishvaran, Adv. Mrs. G. Indira, Adv.
UPON hearing the counsel the Court made the following
O R D E R
I.A. NO.13 OF 2015 IN WP(C) NO.562 OF 2012 [FOR DIRECTIONS]
Having perused the contents of I.A. No.13 for directions, we are of the view that the applicant therein ought to have filed an independent writ petition. However, as the issues arising are of considerable public importance having the potential of affecting the fundamental rights of a large number of citizens we convert I.A. No.13 of 2015 into a writ application under Article 32 of the Constitution of India and issue notice therein returnable on 14th July, 2015. The State of Assam as well as Union of India are directed to file their responses.
W.P.(C) NO.562 OF 2012
We have read and considered the affidavits filed on behalf of the Union of India as well as the State of Assam. Without dilating, all that we would like to say and observe at this stage is that the Court is left with the impression that the Union Government and the State Government of Assam have been dragging their feet in the
matter of implementation of this Court's order particularly with regard to border fencing, construction of border roads, night patrolling, flood-lights, etc. We are, therefore, of the view that the Court should appoint a Commission to visit the Indo-Bangla Border running through the length of the State of Assam and report to this Court his findings as to what he finds on the ground after correlating the same with the statements made in the affidavit filed by the Union of India and the State of Assam. Accordingly, we appoint Shri Upamanyu Hazarika, a learned Senior Advocate of this Court as the Commissioner and request him to do the needful. We direct the Union Government (Ministry of Home Affairs) to make available a fund of Rs.5,00,000/- (Rupees Five lakh) to the Court appointed Commissioner to enable him to perform his task. We would expect an interim report of the Commissioner within three weeks from today and a final report on or before 30th June, 2015.
We have also read and considered the affidavit filed by Shri Prateek Hajela, State Coordinator, NRC, Assam. We have particularly taken into account the statements made in Para 12, 13 and 14 of the counter and the documents referred therein which are in the nature of queries on certain issues raised by the State Coordinator. The said
queries have been addressed to the Ministry of Home Affairs as well as the Registrar General of India. Though the said queries had been made in the month of February, 2015, unfortunately there is no response to the same. We, therefore, direct the aforesaid two authorities to respond to the queries of the learned State Coordinator who will place the replies of the said two authorities before us on 14th July, 2015.
We have also noticed that the Gauhati High Court which had been entrusted with the task of recommending suitable persons for appointment as Chairperson and Members of the Foreigners Tribunal including the 64 Tribunals that are proposed to be created has not been able to perform its task. We, therefore, direct the High Court under Article 142 of the Constitution of India to take prompt steps in the matter and have its list of recommendees ready for consideration by the Government within 45 days from today. Thereafter, we direct the Government of Assam to provide the requisite infrastructure and make the necessary appointments not only of the Chairpersons and Members of the Tribunal but also of the subordinate staff so as to ensure that the Tribunals get operational on or before 10th August, 2015.
Further orders in the matter will be passed on the next date fixed after hearing the learned counsels for all the parties.
I.A. NO.11/2015 IN WP(C) NO.274 OF 2009
No orders in I.A. No.11/2015 is called for at this stage in view of the statement made by the learned State Coordinator that the stage for scrutiny of the applications received for inclusion in the NRC has not yet come and such scrutiny is unlikely to be taken up on or before 14th July, 2015 when the Court is due to consider the matter.
WP(C) NO.876/2014
Service of notice on the respondents may be served through the Standing Counsel of the respective State.
All these cases be listed on 14th July, 2015. We request the Hon'ble the Chief Justice of India to consider making this Bench available on 14th July, 2015 for the whole day to enable due consideration of the matters.
| (MEENAKSHI KOHLI) | (VINOD LAKHINA) | (ASHA SONI) |
|---|---|---|
| COURT MASTER | COURT MASTER | COURT MASTER |
ITEM NO.301 COURT NO.8 SECTION X S U P R E M E C O U R T O F I N D I A RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Writ Petition(s)(Civil) No(s). 562/2012 ASSAM SANMILITA MAHASANGHA & ORS. Petitioner(s) VERSUS UNION OF INDIA & ORS. Respondent(s) (With application for directions and office report) WITH W.P.(C) No. 876/2014 (With appln.(s) for stay and Office Report) W.P.(C) No. 274/2009 (With appln.(s) for further directions and appln.(s) for intervention and appln.(s) for impleadment and Office Report) WITH WP(C) NO.867/2015 Date : 13/05/2015 These petitions were called on for hearing today. CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RANJAN GOGOI HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ROHINTON FALI NARIMAN For Petitioner(s) Mr. Manish Goswami, Adv. Mr. Rameshwar Prasad Goyal,Adv. Mr. Somiran Sharma,Adv. Mr. Arvind Kumar Sharma,Adv. Ms. Ankita Sharma, Adv. For Respondent(s) Mr. N.K. Kaul, ASG Mr. Raghavendra M. Bajaj, Adv. Ms. Sushma Suri, Adv. Mr. Sanyat Lodha, Adv. Mr. Shiv Mangal Sharma, Adv. Ms. Rashmi Malhotra, Adv. Mr. Rakesh Khanna, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Milan Laskar, Adv. Mohd. Parvez Dabas, Adv. Mr. Syed Mehdi Imam,Adv. Mr. Shibashish Misra,Adv. Mr. Anas Tanwir, Adv. Mr. Abdul Qadir Abbasi, Adv. Mr. Abdul Qadir, Adv. Mr. G. Jawed, Adv. Mr. Fuzail Ahmad Ayyubi,Adv. Mr. Mohan Pandey,Adv. Mr. Shakil Ahmed Syed,Adv. Mr. Shadan Farasat,Adv. Mr. Joydeep Gupta, Sr. Adv. Ms. Krishna S., AAG Mr. Avijit Roy, Adv. Ms. Kankana Arandhara, Adv. For M/s Corporate Law Group Mr. B. Krishna Prasad,Adv. Mr. Somiran Sharma,Adv. Mr. Mohit D. Ram,Adv. Mr. Rajeev Dubey, Adv. Mr. Ravi Prakash Mehrotra,Adv. Mr. Anip Sachthey,Adv. Mr. Mohit Paul, Adv. Ms. Shagun Malta, Adv. Mr. S.N.Terdal, Adv. Mr. G.S. Chatterjee, Adv. Mr. Siddharth Bhatnagar, Adv. Mr. Sidharth Mohan, Adv. Mr. Nirnimesh Dube, Adv. Mr. Prateek Jalan, Adv. Ms. Malvika Trivedi, Adv. Mr. Rahul K., Adv. Mr. Ankit Yadav, Adv. Mr. T. Mahipal, Adv.
Mr. Balasubramaniam, Adv. Mr. K.V. Jagdishvaran, Adv. Mrs. G. Indira, Adv.
UPON hearing the counsel the Court made the following
O R D E R
I.A. NO.13 OF 2015 IN WP(C) NO.562 OF 2012 [FOR DIRECTIONS]
Having perused the contents of I.A. No.13 for directions, we are of the view that the applicant therein ought to have filed an independent writ petition. However, as the issues arising are of considerable public importance having the potential of affecting the fundamental rights of a large number of citizens we convert I.A. No.13 of 2015 into a writ application under Article 32 of the Constitution of India and issue notice therein returnable on 14th July, 2015. The State of Assam as well as Union of India are directed to file their responses.
W.P.(C) NO.562 OF 2012
We have read and considered the affidavits filed on behalf of the Union of India as well as the State of Assam. Without dilating, all that we would like to say and observe at this stage is that the Court is left with the impression that the Union Government and the State Government of Assam have been dragging their feet in the
matter of implementation of this Court's order particularly with regard to border fencing, construction of border roads, night patrolling, flood-lights, etc. We are, therefore, of the view that the Court should appoint a Commission to visit the Indo-Bangla Border running through the length of the State of Assam and report to this Court his findings as to what he finds on the ground after correlating the same with the statements made in the affidavit filed by the Union of India and the State of Assam. Accordingly, we appoint Shri Upamanyu Hazarika, a learned Senior Advocate of this Court as the Commissioner and request him to do the needful. We direct the Union Government (Ministry of Home Affairs) to make available a fund of Rs.5,00,000/- (Rupees Five lakh) to the Court appointed Commissioner to enable him to perform his task. We would expect an interim report of the Commissioner within three weeks from today and a final report on or before 30th June, 2015.
We have also read and considered the affidavit filed by Shri Prateek Hajela, State Coordinator, NRC, Assam. We have particularly taken into account the statements made in Para 12, 13 and 14 of the counter and the documents referred therein which are in the nature of queries on certain issues raised by the State Coordinator. The said
queries have been addressed to the Ministry of Home Affairs as well as the Registrar General of India. Though the said queries had been made in the month of February, 2015, unfortunately there is no response to the same. We, therefore, direct the aforesaid two authorities to respond to the queries of the learned State Coordinator who will place the replies of the said two authorities before us on 14th July, 2015.
We have also noticed that the Gauhati High Court which had been entrusted with the task of recommending suitable persons for appointment as Chairperson and Members of the Foreigners Tribunal including the 64 Tribunals that are proposed to be created has not been able to perform its task. We, therefore, direct the High Court under Article 142 of the Constitution of India to take prompt steps in the matter and have its list of recommendees ready for consideration by the Government within 45 days from today. Thereafter, we direct the Government of Assam to provide the requisite infrastructure and make the necessary appointments not only of the Chairpersons and Members of the Tribunal but also of the subordinate staff so as to ensure that the Tribunals get operational on or before 10th August, 2015.
Further orders in the matter will be passed on the next date fixed after hearing the learned counsels for all the parties.
I.A. NO.11/2015 IN WP(C) NO.274 OF 2009
No orders in I.A. No.11/2015 is called for at this stage in view of the statement made by the learned State Coordinator that the stage for scrutiny of the applications received for inclusion in the NRC has not yet come and such scrutiny is unlikely to be taken up on or before 14th July, 2015 when the Court is due to consider the matter.
WP(C) NO.867/2015
Taken on board.
Service of notice on the respondents may be served through the Standing Counsel of the respective State.
All these cases be listed on 14th July, 2015. We request the Hon'ble the Chief Justice of India to consider making this Bench available on 14th July, 2015 for the whole day to enable due consideration of the matters.
| (MEENAKSHI KOHLI) | (VINOD LAKHINA) | (ASHA SONI) |
|---|---|---|
| COURT MASTER | COURT MASTER | COURT MASTER |