Gauhati High Court sets aside order of Foreigners' Tribunal; woman declared Indian

INDIAN AND NOT A FOREIGNER

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: A Foreigners' Tribunal (FT) of Bongaigaon declared Puspa Rani Dhar a foreigner in November 2017. Four years later, the Gauhati High Court set aside the order of the FT and declared her as an Indian citizen. A division bench of Justice N Kotiswar Singh and Justice Malasri Nandi recently passed the order in Dhar's favour.

The Foreigners' Tribunal of Bongaigaon passed an order dated 28.11.2017 in BNGN/FT/Case No.2655/2007, by which Dhar was declared as a foreign national of post 25.03.1971 stream. The Foreigners' Tribunal said that the documents Dhar had produced failed to establish her link with her father Hirendra Nath Paul. So she was declared "foreigner and deportable". Dhar then moved the Gauhati High Court in 2018 by filing a writ petition (WP(C) No. 114/2018) against the order.

Justice N Kotiswar Singh and Justice Malasri Nandi said that the Foreigners' Tribunal rejected the certificate dated 31.01.2003 issued by the Railway authorities which had been submitted by Dhar, as "irrelevant". The court stated, "The said certificate clearly indicates the name of the petitioner's husband Mrinal Kanti Dhar, who was earlier serving in the NF Railway and as per the said certificate, he was born on 01.02.1943 and he was appointed in the Railways on 16.06.1962 and he retired on 31.01.2003. The said certificate also shows the name of the petitioner as the wife having date of birth on 01.01.1952 and also other children, namely, Joysree Dhar, Uday Sankar Dhar, Gita Sree Dhar, Rupa Sree Dhar, Rabi Sankar Dhar and Barun Kanti Dhar. We fail to understand, how the said document can be said to be irrelevant and liable to be rejected. Rather it shows that the petitioner who was married to the aforesaid Mrinal Kanti Dhar, was serving in the Indian Railways and as such, there is a remote possibility of the petitioner being a foreigner and this document will show, in absence of any contrary proof, that in probability the petitioner would be an Indian as an Indian is most unlikely to marry a foreigner."

The court said the Foreigners' Tribunal accepted a certificate issued in Calcutta by Bengal Medical Union in 1966 to Dhar's father. "This document would indicate that if her father was in Bengal in 1966, this will be strong corroborative evidence that the petitioner is an Indian," the order said.

Anita Verma, the special counsel for Foreigners' Tribunals, argued that even if Puspa Rani Dhar was declared an Indian, the petitioner should first register herself with the local foreigners' registration office. But the court rejected this saying the petitioner was "not a foreigner at any point of time".

The court finally set aside the impugned opinion dated 28.11.2017 passed by the Foreigners' Tribunal, Bongaigaon and declared Puspa Rani Dhar "as Indian and not a foreigner".

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