Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court has ruled that PAN cards and voter identity cards cannot independently establish Indian citizenship or prove family relationships, while upholding a Foreigners Tribunal order declaring a woman from Assam’s Darrang district a foreigner.
The court dismissed a petition filed by Kulchan Begum, who challenged a 2018 decision of the Foreigners Tribunal in Mangaldai declaring her a foreigner. The tribunal had concluded that she entered India after March 25, 1971, the cut-off date for determining citizenship under the applicable immigration framework.
A division bench comprising Justices Kalyan Rai Surana and Susmita Phukan Khaund delivered the judgment on November 5, finding that the documents produced by Begum failed to establish her claimed relationship with her parents and grandparents.
Begum, born on April 25, 1977, claimed that Abu Chand Mohammad was her father and Sabed Ali and Jaheda Khatun were her grandparents. She submitted electoral rolls from 1966 and 1970, her voter ID, her father’s documents, a family ration card and other records to support her citizenship claim.
She also highlighted her father’s political background, including his participation in parliamentary and Assembly elections and his tenure as a Guwahati Municipal Corporation councillor. However, the court observed that his political activities and electoral history did not establish that Begum was his daughter.
The bench further held that merely producing PAN cards and Electoral Photo Identity Cards was insufficient. The applicants’ records and verification documents supporting their issuance also needed to be established.
The court found that the evidence failed to demonstrate the family’s continuous residence in Assam between 1970 and 1997. It also rejected the NRC application acknowledgement receipt as proof of citizenship, noting that the updated register had not reached its final publication stage.
Begum’s request to examine additional witnesses was also rejected, as the tribunal had provided several opportunities to present evidence. The court found no grounds to conclude that she had been denied a fair hearing.
The proceedings against Begum began in 2000 under the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, 1983. Following the Supreme Court’s decision striking down the legislation in 2005, the case was transferred to the Foreigners Tribunal system.
With the petition dismissed, the High Court also revoked the interim bail granted to Begum in April 2022.
The judgment comes amid Assam’s ongoing action against people declared foreigners. Government figures presented in the Assembly revealed that 193 people declared foreigners were sent back to Bangladesh between July 2024 and June 2026, including 67 under the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950.
