Gauhati HC fines election officer for questioning citizenship of retired army man
Guwahati, Feb 24: The Gauhati High Court has set aside the order of a Foreigner's Tribunal (FT) declaring a retired army man of Assam as an illegal migrant.
FTs are quasi-judicial bodies that decide the citizenship status of persons living in Assam who are suspected to be foreigners.
Stating that the reference made to the FT by an Electoral Registration Officer in the case of the retired defence employee was due to an absolute 'non-application of mind', the high court imposed a cost of Rs 10,000 on the ERO.
The amount would be paid to the petitioner for causing inconvenience to him.
The 85-year-old Jagat Bahadur Chetri was referred to the FT of Kamrup (Metro) by the ERO during spot verification, with the Tribunal subsequently passing an ex-parte judgement on January 10, 2012, declaring him a foreigner of the post-1971 stream.
As per the Assam Accord, persons entering the state after March 25, 1971, are deemed illegal migrants.
Chetri had filed a writ petition in the high court against the reference made by the ERO and the subsequent FT order.
A bench comprising justices Achintya Malla Bujor Barua and Robin Phukan, in the order, said, " we are of the view that it was an absolute non-application of mind on the part of the ERO of 52 Dispur Legislative Assembly Constituency to have referred the petitioner to the Foreigners Tribunal for an opinion as to whether the petitioner Jagat Bahadur Chetri is a foreigner who entered the State of Assam subsequent to 25.03.1971" from the specified territory."
The court noted that the ERO had mentioned in his records that Chetri was born in Assam's Dibrugarh in 1937 but there is no material to prove that he migrated after that and re-entered the state after March 25, 1971.
Pointing out that Chetri had served in the Army from 1963 to 2001, it said in the order: " we are of the view that the reference itself is not maintainable in law."
The high court in its February 20 judgment also added that Chetri shall be entitled to all rights and privileges as a citizen of India as may be admissible under the law.
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Man allegedly arrives with deadly weapon to attack another, caught by public in Jokatte
Panambur: A man who allegedly came armed to attack another person was caught by members of the public and later handed over to police in Jokatte late on Friday night.
The accused has been identified as Naveen Poojari, originally from Vamanjoor and presently residing in Jokatte.
According to police sources, Naveen was married and has an eight-year-old son. The couple are now divorced.
Police said Naveen suspected that his former wife, who is employed at a showroom in Padil, was moving closely with Devi Prasad Acharya, a mechanic working there.
Based on this suspicion, Naveen allegedly went to the house of Devi Prasad Acharya on Friday night carrying a deadly weapon, created a scene and issued threats.
During the incident, Devi Prasad Acharya reportedly contacted the 112 emergency helpline, following which Naveen fled from the spot.
While escaping, Naveen is said to have fallen from his two-wheeler near the Jokatte Panchayat area. Local residents who rushed to help noticed a deadly weapon on the vehicle and immediately alerted police.
Officials from Panambur Police Station rushed to the spot, took Naveen into custody and brought him to the station.
A case has been registered based on the complaint filed by Devi Prasad Acharya, and further action is under way.
