UN Committee Urges India to Suspend NRC, Review Citizenship Framework
UN CERD report urges India to suspend NRC and address racial discrimination against marginalised communities.
A United Nations human rights panel has called on India to suspend the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and review its citizenship laws, citing concerns over treatment of marginalised groups.
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), in a report released Tuesday in Geneva, said the NRC's implementation in Assam has led to what it described as "systematic and structural racial discrimination" against Bengali-speaking Muslims. The committee also expressed alarm over alleged abuses including torture, extrajudicial killings, and stripping of citizenship affecting Rohingya, migrants, and asylum-seekers.
CERD urged New Delhi to urgently address discrimination, hate speech, and hate crimes targeting these communities. It also flagged the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, noting that Bengali-speaking Muslim voters were reportedly disproportionately affected in West Bengal and Assam.
The panel's observations add to international scrutiny of India's citizenship and voter verification exercises, which the government has defended as measures to identify illegal immigrants and ensure accurate electoral rolls.