Kargil war veteran declared foreigner: Cong slams BJP

New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday hit out at the BJP government over a tribunal in Assam declaring a Kargil war veteran a foreigner, saying it shows the "high- handedness and flawed manner" in which the NRC exercise is being implemented in the northeastern state.

ALSO READ: India to host first-ever international cooperative trade fair in Oct

Mohammad Sanaullah, a resident of Kolohikash village in Kamrup district, was declared a foreigner by the Foreigners Tribunal, Kamrup.

"Shocking!! BJP Govt has labelled the 'Foreigner' tag to a Kargil War Hero! It is an insult to the sacrifice of our brave Armed Forces. This speaks volumes about the high handedness and flawed manner in which the NRC exercise is being implemented in Assam," Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala tweeted.

The draft Assam National Register of Citizens (NRC) was published on July 30, 2018 in which the names of 2.89 crore of the 3.29 crore people were included. The names of 40,70,707 people did not figure in the list. Of these, 37,59,630 names have been rejected and the remaining 2,48,077 are on hold.

ALSO READ: R’than CM Gehlot accuses BJP govt of trying to dismantle state govts

A case was registered in 2008 after Sanaullah's name was listed as a 'D' (doubtful) voter in the voters list, according to Additional Superintendent of Police (Kamrup) Sanjib Saikia.

Sanaullah's family said it would appeal to the Gauhati High Court against the tribunal's verdict.

(PTI)