Pradip Kumar Bhuyan.

Pradip Kumar Bhuyan, the man behind the petition that started the National Register of Citizens (NRC) update exercise, on Saturday said his intention was not to trigger a humanitarian crisis.

Bhuyan said the governmentโ€™s constant neglect has made the problem burgeon into an unsalvagable mess, which has huge human rights implications.

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โ€œThe exercise is so massive that it is bound to affect people. It is so massive that if there is even 1% discrepancy, it means affecting the lives of three lakh people!What happened in the last few years can be traced to the faults in operation and implementation,โ€ Bhuyan told Indian Express.

โ€œI never want anyone to be persecuted โ€” especially women and children,โ€ said the 82-year-old.

The Indian government needs to take responsibility for this, he said, adding, why did successive governments ignore this issue since 1985?โ€

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