Arunachal, Centre gets NHRC notices on racial-profiling tribes

Guwahati: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had sought the Union government and Arunachal Pradesh state government a report in six weeks on the alleged racial profiling and the plans to migrate, people of two tribes from the state, NDTV reported.

The NHRC further ordered both the state and Union to ensure that the human rights of the tribal communities, Chakma and Hajongs, is protected by all means. The commission was acting on a complaint filed by the Chakma Development Foundation of India (CDFI).

CDFI had alleged in its complaint that 65,000 Chakma and Hajong tribals of Arunachal Pradesh are being subjected to racial profiling, and the state is conducting an illegal census to deport the tribes from the state. It sought NHRC to intervene in the matter.

CDFI released a statement on Tuesday that claimed that 60,500 individuals out of the two tribes are citizens by birth, 4,000 migrants need their applications processed, and a thousand cast votes. The statement said that, in 1995, NHRC had approached the Supreme Court seeking protection to the rights and liberties of Chakma and Hajong tribes and the following year, the top court declared that both tribes are Indian citizens and ordered the government to process their citizenship applications. As the matter was left pending, another petition was filed seeking to implement the top court's 1996 order. In September 2015, once again ordered both centre and the state to process the tribes' citizenship application in three months, but none has been processed so far, the statement said.

The complaint alleged that on August 15, 2021, the Arunachal CM announced that the tribals would be relocated outside the state, and Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju confirmed the announcement. In November, the Deputy Commissioner of Changlang district notified that the census of the tribes would be conducted, the complaint said and added that it is racial profiling.

CDFI argued that not only the government was not complying with the Supreme Court directions but also had initiated the racial profiling while the Union law minister kept advocating the tribes' relocation.