Rebels' task force in Nagaland to deal with illegal immigrants
Taking serious note of the 'imminent threat posed to the demographic, socio-economic and political future' of the Nagas, the Working Committee of Naga National Political Groups (WC-NNPGs) resolved to set up an 'Immigration Control Task Force' to control and regulate issues relating to illegal immigrants.
The committee cited the secular nature of the co-existence of diverse communities in the Naga-inhabited areas, where people respect and promote religious tolerance, but categorically stated that this liberal approach would never be allowed to be misused to promote religious fundamentalism.
'Therefore, the Working Committee shall not allow any madrasas to be established and shall also disband any madrasas in existence, if any, in the Naga-inhabited territories,' the committee said in a statement.
'Masjids also should not be misused to foment Jihadist ideology in any manner for which the concerned Muslim Councils in Naga areas are asked to coordinate with the Task Force on related issues,' the statement said.
Advocating for long-term strategic measures to tackle the issue, the committee called for the intensive identification and registration of migrants to avoid unnecessary harassment to legally settled citizens.
It asked community leaders, including village authorities at the grass-root level, to extend their cooperation to the Task Force. It added that the steps being taken must not be construed as anti-Muslim agenda or against any particular religious or social groups.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scroll.in
20 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
Assam to drop foreigners tribunal cases against non-Muslims who entered state before 2015, cites CAA
The Assam Government has asked district authorities and members of the foreigners tribunals to drop cases against members of six communities – Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain and Parsi – who entered the state on or before December 31, 2014, citing the Citizenship Amendment Act. The state's home and political department held a meeting on July 17 and had discussed 'issues related to Foreigners Tribunal with reference to Citizenship Amendment Act' and the 'dropping off cases'. The meeting was held following a directive from Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. The Citizenship Amendment Act is aimed to provide a fast track to citizenship to refugees from six minority religious communities, except Muslims, from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan, on the condition that they have lived in India for six years and have entered the country by December 31, 2014. It was passed by Parliament in December 2019. The Union government notified the rules under the Act in March 2024. The foreigners tribunals in Assam are quasi-judicial bodies that adjudicate on matters of citizenship based on lineage and a 1971 cut-off date. They rely primarily on documents submitted by persons to establish their family's residency in Assam or India before 1971. The tribunals have been accused of arbitrariness and bias, and declaring people foreigners on the basis of minor spelling mistakes, a lack of documents or lapses in memory. Of the 1.6 lakh persons declared foreigners so far, more than 69,500 are Hindus. The department, under which the border police and the foreigners tribunals function, directed district commissioners, police chiefs and members of the tribunals to submit an action taken report in the matter. 'As per the amendments made to the Citizenship Act, the FTs are not supposed to pursue cases of foreigners belonging to the six specified communities (Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh, Parsi and Jain communities) who had entered into Assam on or prior to 31.12.2014,' showed the minutes of the meeting signed by Ajay Tiwari, the additional chief secretary, home and political department. Scroll has seen the document. 'It was suggested to drop all such cases,' the minutes added. It added: 'In this regard, the district commissioner and the senior SPs [superintendent of police] should immediately convene a meeting with their respective FT members and also review the developments periodically and submit the action taken report to this department.' The notification sent to district authorities said that 'foreigners should be encouraged and supported' for applying for Indian citizenship as per provisions of the Citizenship Amendment Act. It also noted that the Assam government had issued 'clear cut' instructions for withdrawal of all cases filed against persons belonging to the Gorkha and Koch-Rajbongshi communities. 'This should be complied with forthwith,' the government said. In July 2024, the Assam government had asked the state's border police not to forward cases of non-Muslims who had entered India illegally before 2014 to foreigners tribunals. The border police, which investigates citizenship cases, was told by the Assam home department at the time that the undocumented immigrants from the six communities should 'be advised' instead to apply for citizenship on the Citizenship Amendment Act portal, and that their cases would be decided by the Union government. Sarma had said at the time that existing cases would not be dropped. Critics contend that the Citizenship Amendment Act undermines the 1985 Assam Accord between the Union government and the leaders of the Assam Movement, which was launched in 1979 to identify and deport undocumented immigrants. The accord stipulates that anyone who entered Assam after the midnight of March 24, 1971, be identified and deported. Assamese nationalist view 'illegal migrants', irrespective of their religion, as a threat to the state's culture and resources. The Citizenship Amendment Act had sparked massive protests in Assam and several other parts of the country in 2019 and 2020. However, the amended law was welcomed by Assam's Bengali Hindus. In August 2019, Assam published a National Register of Citizens with the aim of separating Indian citizens from undocumented immigrants living in the state. More than 19 lakh persons, or 5.7% of the applicants, were left out of the final list. In March 2024, Sarma said five lakh Bengali Hindus, two lakh Assamese Hindu groups Koch-Rajbongshi, Das, Kalita and Sarma (Assamese), and 1.5 lakh Gorkhas had been left out of the National Register of Citizens. The chief minister had also said that seven lakh Muslims are among the 19 lakh persons excluded from the register. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party had claimed that Hindus excluded from the register in Assam would be able to gain citizenship under the amended law. There have been fears that Muslims would be the only ones who stand to lose their citizenship in such an exercise.
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
Bangladesh to hold elections in February 2026, says interim leader Muhammad Yunus
Bangladesh will hold elections in February 2026, interim leader Muhammad Yunus said Tuesday (August 5, 2025), the first polls since a mass uprising overthrew the government last year. 'On behalf of the interim government, I will write a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner requesting that the election be arranged before Ramadan in February 2026,' Mr. Yunus said in a broadcast on the one-year anniversary of the ousting of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Nobel Peace Prize winner Mr. Yunus, 85, is leading the caretaker government as its chief adviser until elections, and has said he will step down after the vote. 'We will step into the final and most important phase after delivering this speech to you, and that is the transfer of power to an elected government', he said. Mr. Yunus had earlier said elections would be held in April, but key political parties have been demanding he hold them earlier, and before the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in the Muslim-majority nation of 170 million people. 'I urge you all to pray for us so that we can hold a fair and smooth election, enabling all citizens to move forward successfully in building a 'New Bangladesh'', he added. 'On behalf of the government, we will extend all necessary support to ensure that the election is free, peaceful and celebratory in spirit.'
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
The weapon and ammunition were allegedly seized from accused Zeeshan Ali's house in Noida, they said, adding that an ATS team, acting on information revealed by him, had taken him to his residence in Noida.
The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) on Tuesday said that it has recovered a pistol and three live cartridges from the house of one of the five persons it earlier arrested for allegedly being associated with banned terrorist group Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS). The weapon and ammunition were allegedly seized from accused Zeeshan Ali's house in Noida, they said, adding that an ATS team, acting on information revealed by him, had taken him to his residence in Noida. On July 22, the Gujarat ATS had apprehended four persons — Fardin Sheikh, Saifulla Qureshi, Mohammad Faiq and Zeeshan Ali — for their involvement in advancing the agenda of the AQIS through social media platforms by allegedly undertaking Ghazwa-e-Hind, provoking India's Muslim community to engage in violent acts against non-Muslims, advocating armed revolt against the elected government, and pushing for an Islamic Sharia-based regime. Legal action was initiated under Sections 13, 18, 38, and 39 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967, and Sections 113, 152, 196, and 61 of the BNS. Then on July 27, Shama Parveen, the alleged key accused of this module, was arrested from Karnataka's Bengaluru. On Tuesday, a statement from the ATS said, 'During preliminary verification of information related to the said offense, surveillance of social media accounts had revealed that the accused Zeeshan Ali is in possession of a semi-automatic pistol. Based on the facts revealed during the intensive interrogation of the accused Zeeshan Ali by the Investigating Officer, DySP Virjeetsinh Parmar and his team, accused voluntarily disclosed the facts that he was indeed in possession of an illegal semi-automatic pistol.'
