GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court issued an order directing the border branch of Assam Police to ensure the conditional release of 'declared foreigners', who had spent more than two years in detention at the detention centres, within the next seven days.
Hearing a petition on Wednesday pertaining to the Supreme Court’s order of April 13 for the release of the inmates in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, a bench of Justice Manojit Bhuyan and Justice Ajit Borthakur issued the directions to the Superintendents of Police (Border) of all districts for execution.
“The concerned Superintendent of Police (Border) shall first take stock of the names and period of detention of such detenues under his/her jurisdiction claiming benefit of release on ball for having completed more than 2 (two) years in detention and thereafter take necessary steps for release of such detenues on bail who are lodged in any of the six detention centres in the state of Assam…subject to fulfillment of the following conditions by each of the detenues claiming such release on bail,” the court ordered.
The conditions for release include execution of bond with two sureties of Rs 5,000 each of Indian citizens, declaration of verifiable address of stay after release, capturing and storing of the biometrics of the iris of both eyes and all ten fingerprints and photos in a secured database, declarations that the detenue shall report once every week to the police located within the vicinity of his/her verifiable address of stay after release, that s/he shall notify any change of his/her address to the police on the same day and in case of violation of any of the conditions, s/he will be liable to be apprehended and produced before the Foreigners’ Tribunal.
“Let the required steps by the jurisdictional Superintendent of Police (Border) for the release on bail in terms of the directions above be complied with as expeditiously as possible within an outer limit period of seven days from today (Wednesday),” the court ordered.