SC upholds validity of Section 6A of Assam Citizenship Act

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act related to the grant of Indian citizenship to immigrants in Assam by a majority verdict of 4:1.A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said the Assam Accord was a political solution to the problem of illegal migration. Justices Surya Kant, M M Sundresh and Manoj Misra in their majority verdict held that Parliament had the legislative competence to enact the provision.
The section 6A was inserted in 1985 following the Assam Accord. It created a special provision for Assam by which persons of Indian origin who came from Bangladesh before 1st January 1966, were deemed to be citizens of India as of that date. The section also said that, Persons of Indian origin who entered Assam between 1st January 1966, and 25th March 1971, and were required to register themselves. They were granted citizenship only after 10 years of residence. However, Section 6A specified a cut-off date of 25th March, 1971 and said that persons entering after the cutoff date will be termed illegal immigrants. However, certain indigenous groups of Assam have challenged this provision, contending that it legalised illegal infiltration of foreign migrants from Bangladesh.
On December 7, the apex court had directed the Central government to furnish data on the number of immigrants who were conferred Indian citizenship through Section 6A(2) of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and what steps have been taken so far to curb illegal migration into Indian territory. The affidavit had stated that 14,346 foreign nationals were deported from the country between 2017 and 2022, and 17,861 migrants who had entered Assam between January 1966 and March 1971 were given Indian citizenship under the provision. 32,381 persons were declared foreigners by orders of Foreigners Tribunals between 1966-1971, it had added.On December 17, 2014, a matter relating to citizenship in Assam was referred to the five-judge Constitution bench. On April 19, 2017, the top court constituted the bench to hear the case.
AASU and AAGSP were groups that agitated against an influx of Bangladeshi immigrants after Bangladesh separated from West Pakistan on 26 March 1971. The All Assam Students' Union (AASU), one of the signatories of the Assam Accord of 1985, on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court judgement regarding the pact's cut-off date and said it re-established the "rationality" of the historic agreement. Hours after the apex court pronounced its judgement, AASU welcomed the verdict and said it is the victory of the struggling people of Assam who have stood selflessly in favour of the Assam Accord for the past four decades.