Gauhati HC directs Immigrant to apply for citizenship by taking benefit of CAA, quashes Foreigner’s Tribunal Order declaring Hindu Man migrated from Bangladesh as a Foreigner

The Gauhati High Court in the case of Bablu Paul v/s The Union of India and Ors. directed the immigrant to apply for citizenship by taking benefit of CAA and quashes Foreigner’s Tribunal Order declaring Hindu Man migrated from Bangladesh as a Foreigner.

The petitioner when he was about 2 years old had entered India with his father Boloram Paul along with his grandfather Chintaharan Paul from the then East Pakistan and they were given refugee status by the Government of India as clearly evident from the certificate issued by the Government of West Bengal to the members of the minority community in East Pakistan desiring to stay in India. According to the petitioner, the petitioner’s grandfather entered through West Bengal, soon thereafter, settled in the State of Assam and accordingly, his name appeared in the voters’ list of 1966 and thereafter, he died. Accordingly, it has been submitted that since the petitioner’s grandfather was an Indian citizen who was casting vote since 1966, the petitioner is to be treated as an Indian.

The petitioner contended that the aforesaid finding of the tribunal is contrary to the materials on record, as it is clearly on record that the petitioner had entered along with his father and grandfather in 1964. It is also on record that the petitioner’s grandfather was a voter in Assam in 1966 and being the grandson of the Chintaharan Paul (grandfather), the petitioner is claiming to be a citizen of this country, even though he might have stayed in Calcutta for certain period as mentioned above as he ultimately shifted to Cachar, Assam.

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