The Gauhati High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Assam government, seeking a detailed response on the whereabouts of two brothers—Abu Bakkar Siddik and Akbar Ali—who were declared foreigners by a Foreigners Tribunal and allegedly detained without disclosure since May 25.
A division bench comprising Justice Kalyan Rai Surana and Justice Malasri Nandi was hearing a writ petition filed by their nephew, Torap Ali, who expressed apprehension that his uncles may be in danger of being “illegally pushed into Bangladesh” by the authorities. The court has listed the matter for further hearing on June 4.
According to the petition, Siddik and Ali were summoned by Nagarbera police in Kamrup district on May 25, but their family has not received any information about their status since then. The petitioner alleged that the authorities have refused to share details about the detentions, creating concern over possible illegal deportation without due legal process.
During the hearing, state counsel J. Payeng informed the court that both men are currently in the custody of Assam Border Police.
Siddik and Ali were declared foreigners in 2017 by a Foreigners Tribunal for failing to provide valid documents proving that they or their ancestors had entered India before March 24, 1971—the cut-off date set by the 1985 Assam Accord. The duo was initially lodged at the Goalpara detention camp but were granted bail in 2020 following a Supreme Court ruling that allowed the release of detainees who had spent over two years in custody.
The petitioner has argued that the arrest and potential deportation of the brothers without exhausting all legal remedies violates their fundamental rights. He termed the detentions as “arbitrary deprivation” of constitutional protections, especially when no conclusive finality has been reached regarding their citizenship.
Foreigners Tribunals in Assam, established under the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order, 1964, are quasi-judicial bodies that decide the citizenship status of individuals suspected to be illegal immigrants under the Foreigners Act, 1946. Currently, Assam has 100 such tribunals functioning primarily in the context of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
The court’s notice signals growing judicial scrutiny over the procedures followed by authorities in dealing with individuals declared foreigners, especially amid rising concerns about human rights violations and procedural fairness in such cases.
