New Delhi, it is learnt, is working on a formula of giving work permit to the “illegal foreigners” who will be identified through the ongoing process of National Register of Citizen (NRC) as it is unlikely that they will be deported back to Bangladesh.
If officials in the Union Home Ministry are to be believed, these “D” citizens who will be tagged as ‘illegal foreigners” will be given only work permit and shelter in India.
“They may not be provided with any other rights including right of voting,” said a senior government official on condition of anonymity.
This central government official had played a key role in initiating the NRC update process when it was first started. The official further said that the exact number of such people will come clear to the fore once the final NRC is published.
In the final NRC draft that was published on Tuesday last, more than 40 lakh people found their names excluded.
It is reported that after the draft was made public, on an urgent basis Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Harshvardhan Shringla met Bangladesh Foreign minister A H Mahmood Ali and Bangladesh’s ruling party leaders and conveyed the “issues” behind NRC publication.
It is reported that Home Minister Rajnath Singh had already briefed his Bangladesh counterpart Asaduzzaman Khan on the “broad contours” of the NRC and the process that was adopted by the Centre. This discussion had reportedly taken place when Singh visited Dhaka on July 13.
It was intimated to the Bangladesh government that nobody was talking about “deportation,” as the NRC process was Supreme Court mandated.
Minister of State (External Affairs) V K Singh is also likely to meet his Bangladesh counterpart A H Mahmood Ali on the sidelines of the ASEAN ministerial meetings in Singapore shortly.
It is learnt that Singh during his proposed meeting with Ali will further inform him about NRC process.
“Our government will never want that its relation with neighbouring Bangladesh gets affected for NRC,” said the official.