The Gauhati High Court has dismissed a writ petition filed by a resident of Assam challenging a Foreigners’ Tribunal order that declared him a foreigner. The court held that the petitioner failed to prove his Indian citizenship through reliable documentary evidence, affirming the tribunal’s findings after a detailed examination of records and witness statements.
Background of the Case
The case concerned Kurban Ali, a resident of Kamrup (Metro), Assam, who approached the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution. He challenged an order dated 6 December 2018, passed by the Foreigners’ Tribunal No. 3, Guwahati, which had declared him a foreigner under the Foreigners Act.
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Ali claimed that he was an Indian citizen by birth and relied on several documents, including electoral rolls from 1966 and 1993, NRC legacy data, and voter identity cards. He asserted that his father and grandfather were Indian citizens whose names appeared in earlier electoral records.
The Tribunal, however, found inconsistencies in the documents and concluded that Ali failed to establish a clear link with his projected ancestors.
Arguments Before the High Court
Before the High Court, the petitioner argued that the Tribunal wrongly rejected his documents due to minor spelling variations in names. He submitted that discrepancies such as “Kurban” and “Kurpan” or “Kalachan” and “Kaluchan” were clerical errors and should not override the substance of his claim.
His counsel also urged the court to allow him another opportunity to prove his lineage by considering additional documents, including land records and NRC-related materials.
On the other hand, the State and Union of India opposed the plea, stating that the petitioner failed to establish a continuous and credible link between himself and the alleged Indian ancestors. They argued that electoral rolls alone, especially post-1971 documents, cannot prove citizenship without corroboration.
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Court’s Observations
After examining the records, the division bench noted several contradictions in the petitioner’s case. The court observed that the names, villages, and family relationships mentioned across different documents did not match consistently.
The bench pointed out that:
- The petitioner could not clearly establish the identity of his grandfather.
- Electoral records showed different villages across different years.
- The NRC document relied upon by the petitioner contradicted his own claims.
- Oral testimony of witnesses could not substitute documentary proof in citizenship cases.
The court remarked, “Oral evidence without reliable documentary support cannot establish citizenship under law.”
It also relied on earlier rulings which held that documents not produced before the Foreigners’ Tribunal cannot ordinarily be considered at the writ stage.
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Why the Court Rejected the Plea
The High Court found that:
- The petitioner failed to prove linkage with his projected parents and grandparents.
- The voters’ lists from different years reflected inconsistent residential details.
- The witnesses produced did not conclusively support his lineage.
- The petitioner’s own documents contradicted each other.
The bench observed that the Tribunal had properly evaluated the evidence and that no legal error or perversity was found in its reasoning.
Final Decision
Dismissing the writ petition, the Gauhati High Court upheld the Foreigners’ Tribunal’s 2018 order declaring Kurban Ali a foreigner.
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“The impugned opinion does not suffer from any infirmity and calls for no interference,” the court held, adding that the legal consequences flowing from the Tribunal’s decision would continue to apply.
The court also directed that a copy of the judgment be sent back to the Tribunal for record purposes.
Case Title: Kurban Ali vs Union of India & Ors.
Case No.: WP(C) 1616/2019
Decision Date: 20 January 2026
