GUWAHATI: An elusive Assam schoolteacher, who was engaged by the authorities in the updation of National Register of Citizens (NRC) even after he was declared as an illegal immigrant by a foreigners’ tribunal, has been arrested by the police.
Khairul Islam, the teacher of a government-run primary school, was arrested from a hideout in Moirabari area of Central Assam’s Morigaon district on Wednesday night.
He went into hiding last month after the Gauhati High Court had in June this year upheld a 2015 judgement of Morigaon No-3 Foreigners’ Tribunal that declared him as an illegal immigrant.
He had later moved the Gauhati HC challenging the judgement of the foreigners’ tribunal.
The Morigaon district authorities engaged Islam at an NRC Seva Kendra in December last year without verifying his credentials.
After the lapses came to the fore recently, the authorities removed him from the process of NRC updation on August 1. Sensing trouble, he went underground along with his mother, sister and two brothers.
He had secured the job of a schoolteacher in 1996.
Morigaon Superintendent of Police Swapnil Deka told reporters on Thursday that Islam would be sent to a detention camp in Tezpur. He also said that efforts were on to nab Islam’s mother, sister and two brothers.
Morigaon deputy commissioner (district magistrate) Hemen Das said Islam’s role during the NRC updation process was limited to assisting others. He said the district administration was not aware of his case pending in Gauhati HC.
Earlier, several organisations in the state had criticized the district authorities for the lapses.
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