Today, On 26th July, The Supreme Court criticized the Assam government for the poor conditions in its detention center for foreigners. A bench directed the Assam Legal Services Authority to inspect the facility to confirm the inadequate provisions and evaluate the quality and hygiene of the food and kitchen.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday criticized the Assam government for the “sorry state” of a detention center that houses individuals with unclear citizenship status and foreigners awaiting deportation.
The top court expressed concern over the “lack of water and sanitation facilities and non-functioning toilets.”
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Referring to a report by the Secretary of the Assam Legal Services Authority about the detention center in Matia, located in the Goalpara district, a bench comprising Justice Abhay Oka and Justice AG Masih stated,
“There are no proper toilets no medical facilities. How are you managing this?”
The report highlighted significant deficiencies in the Matia detention centre, stating,
“We find the facilities are very poor, there is no adequate water supply, no sanitation system, or proper toilets. The report does not speak about medical health.”
Responding to a petition concerning the Matia detention centre, which houses 3,000 individuals, the Supreme Court Bench instructed the Assam Legal Services Authority to inspect the facility to verify the subpar conditions and evaluate the food quality and kitchen hygiene. The authority was given three weeks to submit its findings.
Previously, the court directed the Central government to deport 17 individuals classified as foreigners and detained in camps throughout north-eastern India. Four of these individuals have been detained for two years, and the Centre has yet to respond to the deportation issue.
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In 2023, the Assam government began relocating identified foreigners to the detention centre following an order from the Gauhati High Court. These individuals had been declared foreigners either by the Foreigners Tribunals, a quasi-judicial body, or by court convictions.
The National Register of Citizens (NRC), published in August 2019, aimed to distinguish Indian citizens from undocumented immigrants in Assam. According to the NRC, anyone unable to prove that they or their ancestors entered Assam before midnight on March 24, 1971, would not be considered a citizen.