Excluded: The struggles of citizenship in Assam

Excluded is a two-part video series on the struggles of citizenship in Assam. In the first report, Ayushi Malik and Ashfaque EJ report on individuals suspected of being foreigners about their lives inside India’s detention centres and the continuing difficulties even after being released. “I came to know about my father’s death three months after it happened,” said Unnati Begum, a resident of Barpeta. “I felt heartbroken and helpless. I couldn’t even give him some water before he died—or see him one last time.” Begum is one of 1.9 million people who were excluded from the state’s National Register of Citizens. Thousands of people have been arrested and sent to detention centres as suspected foreigners over different points in time

In part two, they speak to the families of Magrab Ali and Ambar Ali, both of whom died by suicide, while struggling with the despair of Assam’s citizenship ordeal. Magrab received a notice on 10 January 2024 directing him to appear before a Foreigners’ Tribunal to prove his citizenship. The Border Police forced him to accept and sign the document. But the notice was issued in the name of Mubarak Ali. “We told him it’s not in your name,” Jaban Ali, Magrab’s brother, said. “We tried to motivate him. We said we’ll take care of it, no matter the cost.” But on 26 January, four days ahead of his hearing before the Foreigners Tribunal, Magrab died by suicide. “I lived with him all these years out of great love,” Kamala Khatun, Magrab’s wife, said. “He used to love me a lot. He never fought with anyone from the village. My husband was a good person. He is no more because of a notice.”