Budget session Day 7: Opposition corners govt over detention camps, BJP hits back

Guwahati, March 5: The seventh day of the 18th Budget session of Assem Legislative Assembly witnessed charged exchanges between the treasury and Opposition benches over the issue of detention camps.

Addressing a query raised by the Opposition, Udalguri legislator Gobinda Chandra Basumatari of the United People’s Party – Liberal (UPPL) asserted that detention camps are integral to national security.

"We cannot deny the necessity of detention centres in the country. It is essential for a sovereign nation, a prerogative of a democratic structure, and a requisite for national security,” he said.

Drawing a distinction between Assam’s detention camps and historical examples under Nazi Germany, Basumatari urged the House not to draw parallels.

He also called for improving conditions in detention camps. “We can, however, look into the conditions of the camps and work to make them more humane,” the UPPL MLA added.

Raising a counterpoint, Nurul Huda, the Rupahihat legislator from the Indian National Congress (INC), questioned whether all detainees in the camps were indeed foreign nationals.

“The entire family may be Indian nationals, but one person is singled out as a Bangladeshi national. Before declaring someone a foreign national, it must be the state’s prerogative to establish which country they belong to,” Huda said.

Sarbhog MLA Manoranjan Talukdar of the Communist Party of India – Marxist (CPI-M) claimed that many detainees ended up in camps due to ex parte decisions.

“People are sent to detention camps following ex parte rulings, often without accused even receiving notices. A significant portion of governance under the BJP regime runs on oral orders. Similarly, oral orders are given to Foreigners Tribunal on which cases to dispose of and which individuals to declare as foreigners,” he alleged.

Calling detention camps “inhumane institutions”, Talukdar said, “If they are foreigners, why are they being confined in detention camps? Even the Supreme Court has ruled that they must be sent back to their native country.”

Chenga MLA Ashraful Hussain of the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) cited 2023 data, stating that 96,000 cases were pending in Foreigners Tribunal, while the number of declared foreigners stood at approximately 1.59 lakh.

Countering the Opposition, Bijni legislator Bijoy Kumar Ray of the BJP argued that detention camps and de-voter lists were legacies of previous governments.

“It is only under the current government that detention camps are being viewed in a humane manner,” Ray said. He further claimed that the government had taken steps to repatriate foreign nationals.

“This government has sent back many foreign nationals to their native countries. Additionally, it has granted bail to a number of detainees to help them reunite with their families,” Ray said.