The ruling BJP claimed in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday it has the courage to implement the Assam accord signed between the Centre and the leaders of the Assam Movement when Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister. BJP President Amit Shah’s comment that Assam’s National Register of Citizens (NRC) is an integral part of the accord led to disruptions and adjournment of the House for the day.

Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu decided to suspend the question hour based on a notice under Rule 267 and hold a brief discussion on the NRC issue. Initiating the debate, Opposition leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said Bengali-speaking people in Assam are a part of the country, too.

The Centre and the State should take a humanitarian approach towards the issue of migration, said Azad, urging the governments not to look at the matter through the prism of caste, religion or region. “We don’t want any person to be driven out of the country. This is not only about 40 lakh people; if you consider their children and families, it comes to 1-1.5 crore people,” he said. The Congress had earlier warned the Centre that the issue will have national and international consequences.

Azad further urged the State and Central governments to take the responsibility of proving the citizenship of the people, rather than putting the onus on them. “The Centre should make legal provisions for the affected persons and there should be no harassment,” he said and asked political parties to desist from making it an issue of votes.

Trinamool Congress leader Sukhendu Shekhar Roy said even the names of defence personnel, government officials, a former MP and a former Deputy Speaker have been struck off. “We demand that the Human Rights body, and no other organisation, should supervise the situation,” Roy demanded.

Shah, in his speech, said the Opposition wants to save “illegal Bangladeshis”. The NRC is the spirit of the accord which sought to identify illegal migrants and prepare a list of Indian citizens, he said, adding that the exercise was now being conducted under the supervision of the Supreme Court.

“NRC is being conducted on the SC order. There are 40 lakh people (missing in the list)...Whom do you want to save? You want to save illegal Bangaldesis?” he asked. “This was the Congress PM’s (Rajiv Gandhi) initiative. He did not have the courage. We have the courage and we are doing it.”

Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) leader Biswajit Daimary’s comments led to some disruptions in the House and the Chairman later removed those from the record. “There won’t be any action taken on over 40 lakh people (whose names are in the NRC list). They can submit the documents and proof. There should not be any confusion on this,” he said.

The CPI’s D Raja said the decision should be based on national consensus. “It (the issue) has the potential to impact our relationship with Bangladesh. It has the potential to disrupt harmony among our own States, not only in the North-East, but also in East and North India. Keeping this in view, the government should handle it very carefully and should see to it that no genuine Indian citizen, irrespective of region, religion or language, is omitted from the National Register,” he said.

In the Lok Sabha, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi raised the matter during zero hour and said the government does not have data about the number of illegal immigrants in Assam and not all the 40 lakh people who have not found a place in the draft NRC are foreigners. “Despite spending around ₹ 1,200 crore and a lot of efforts by officials, both the Centre and the State government do not know the number of illegal immigrants in Assam,” he said. “The BJP’s approach to NRC has been weak, casual and ineffective.”

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