The process to update the National Register of Citizens (NPR) is all set to commence from April 1, 2020, and already there is mounting opposition against the exercise. Perhaps, this is what has led Union Home Minister Amit Shah to make another declaration in Parliament to make it more palatable to people. But will the government issue any official legally binding notification or resolution to back Shah’s latest assurances?
Shah told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, “I say it clearly: First, no document will be asked for NPR. Documents weren’t sought in the previous NPR. They will not be sought this time either. Second, many people are worried about not having any information. You are free to provide any information you want. It is optional.” Upon further questions from the opposition he reiterated, “Let me say, now that we are sitting face to face… support us now. I say it clearly: First, no document will be asked for NPR. Second, any information that you don’t have, you don’t have to share that. And third, I say it on the floor of Rajya Sabha as Home Minister, nobody will be marked D.”
However, all of this appears to be a bit of a misdirect. For starters, the NPR appears to be merely a smokescreen for the National Register of Citizens (NRC) or National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC). Now, the government has cried itself hoarse saying that talks have not even begun for the NRC/NRIC. But the NPR does valuable groundwork for it.
It is noteworthy that the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003, mandated the creation of an NPR (National Population Register) to function as the mother database for the NRC. Kiren Rijiju had stated in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha when he was the Minister of State for Home Affairs: “The NPR is the first step towards creation of National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC) by verifying the citizenship status of every usual resident.” Clause 4-4 of the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003, gives arbitrary powers to the local registrar, the lowest-rung officer in the bureaucracy, to declare anyone a doubtful citizen. Fear and panic are growing amongst the common people at the prospect of the NPR-NRC. There are reports of corruption for getting documents re-issued and even for creating fake documents. If the census is held with the NPR, even the census data will be contaminated in this atmosphere of distrust and calls for boycott.
A quick look at the list of questions in the NPR shows how it is nothing but a tool to extract citizenship related information from respondents, instead of a garden variety census exercise that the government wants us to believe it is. Why else would the NPR want to know about your parents’ place of birth? Why else would it have a field saying “Nationality as declared”. The NPR Manual 2020 for enumerators and supervisors released by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India, Ministry of Home Affairs clearly says, “Nationality recorded is as declared by the respondent. This does not confer any right to Indian Citizenship.”
It is also noteworthy that it is mandatory to answer census questions as per section 8 of the Census Act 1948. However, one cannot ignore the government’s previous attempts to conflate the NPR with the census, thereby implying that it is mandatory to answer NPR questions. Now the Home Minister says, it is not mandatory to share information. Also, if offering information or documentation is voluntary, why is it being sought in the first place? What will the government do with the voluntarily collected information? There are fears of this data being used for profiling purposes. Though privacy of the census data is protected as per provisions of the Census Act, 1948, no such provision exists under the NPR. The possible misuse of the data is a serious concern.
Interestingly, according to the official census website: “The objective of the NPR is to create a comprehensive identity database of every usual resident in the country. The database would contain demographic as well as biometric particulars.” Now, how exactly does the government plan to get biometric information? Will it tap into the Aadhaar database and link it with NPR?
Now, if we go by what Amit Shah said, no documents will be sought for NPR. But, the instruction manual for updation of NPR form has provisions to ask for Aadhaar number, mobile number, Voter ID Card number and Driving License number if available. It is noteworthy that it says “if available” and not “optional”. Does this mean if a person has an Aadhaar number, they can choose not to disclose it? How voluntary is the voluntary disclosure? Please clarify, Mr Shah.
Though Shah has issued multiple press releases about the NPR, we are yet to see a Gazette Notification or General Resolution issued to categorically state exactly what Shah said about the NPR, especially with respect to demand for documentation, voluntary disclosure of information, as well as the contentious ‘D’ (doubtful) mark in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
The entire NPR Manual may be viewed here: