In a significant ruling, the Gauhati High Court on Wednesday set aside a Foreigner's Tribunal order that had declared Musstt. Ulufa Khatoon, also known as Ulupa Khatun from Goalpara district, as an illegal immigrant. The bench, comprising Justice Kalyan Rai Surana and Justice Rajesh Mazumdar, remanded the matter back to the Tribunal for a fresh opinion, asking it to carefully evaluate the voter lists and documents already on record.
Background
The case stemmed from a 2023 order of the Foreigner's Tribunal (FT) No.1 in Goalpara, which had held that Khatoon could not prove her Indian citizenship. The Tribunal had concluded that while she successfully established her relationship with her father, Badsha Ali, she failed to prove that her family lineage in India went back before 1979. On this basis, she was branded as a foreigner who allegedly entered India after March 25, 1971 - the cut-off date fixed under the Assam Accord.
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Challenging this finding, Khatoon approached the High Court through a writ petition, arguing that crucial evidence such as multiple voter lists and family records were overlooked.
Court’s Observations
The bench heard arguments from both sides at length. Counsel for the petitioner argued that minor spelling variations in names like "Ramjan,"
"Toramjan," and "Torajan" were clerical mistakes, not evidence of a different lineage. The Tribunal, however, had treated these discrepancies as fatal to her case.
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Justice Mazumdar, delivering the order, noted:
"The Tribunal omitted to evaluate the shifting of place of residence of her grandparents and parents and the minor variation in names appearing across the voters’ lists of 1966, 1979 and 1985."
The Court also observed that the Tribunal had accepted her relationship with her father but failed to consider how that relationship linked back to her grandfather as reflected in earlier electoral rolls. According to the judges, such documents could not be brushed aside without proper reasoning.
Decision
Setting aside the 2023 Tribunal opinion, the High Court directed that the matter be reconsidered.
"The writ petition is allowed to the extent of remanding the case back for a fresh opinion in accordance with law," the order stated.
The Court instructed Khatoon to appear before the Tribunal within 20 days along with the certified copy of the order. The Tribunal has been asked to issue a fresh opinion within two months, based on the materials already available.
With this, the High Court refrained from entering into the merits of other arguments and made it clear that no further costs were imposed. The fate of Khatoon’s citizenship will now hinge on the Tribunal’s fresh determination.
Case Title: Musstt. Ulufa Khatoon @ Ulupa Khatun vs The Union of India and 5 Ors
Case No.: WP(C)/3214/2024
