Thousands of Muslims would get stripped from the citizenship as authorities in the northeastern Indian state of Assam published a list that aims to identify genuine citizen.
A total of 31.1 million people were included in the National Register of Citizens (NRC), leaving out 1.9 million people, according to a statement from the Assam government.
The list was originally prepared way back in 1951. The new NRC will include those whose names appear in the 1951 document and their descendants.
The list will also include those who have been on India’s electoral rolls up to March 24, 1971, or in any other document approved by the government.
The government says it wants to detect and deport undocumented immigrants from Bangladesh.
Assam, with a population of 33 million people, is in a state of high alert and additional security forces have been deployed in anticipation of any law-and-order situation following the publication of the NRC list.
