The Supreme Court has given the Assam government a two-week deadline to justify its orders declaring five women as illegal foreigners. A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta granted the extension after state counsel requested additional time to submit counter-affidavits responding to the petitions.
​This order follows a June 5 ruling by the top court that paused the deportation of the five women while it reviews their appeals against the Gauhati High Court's decisions.
"As prayed, two weeks is granted to the counsel for the respondent - State of Assam to file vakalatnama and counter affidavit(s) in all the cases.
List after two weeks," the bench said in its July 16 order.
On June 5, the top court had ordered status quo on the deportation of the petitioners while agreeing to hear their pleas challenging separate orders of the Gauhati High Court.
During the hearing on Thursday, an advocate appearing for one of the petitioners referred to a July 13 verdict of the apex court, which held that the determination of citizenship status must be made through a fair, lawful and reasoned process.
Another advocate appearing for some petitioners said two of the women were in detention and the top court had stayed their deportation by ordering status quo in the matter.
The counsel appearing for the Assam government sought two weeks to file replies, which was granted by the bench.
The Gauhari High Court had earlier rejected the pleas filed by the petitioners seeking quashing of the orders passed by the Foreigners Tribunals declaring them foreigners or illegal migrants who had illegally entered into India from Bangladesh.
In its July 13 verdict on a batch of separate appeals arising out of the proceedings before the Foreigners Tribunals in Assam and the erstwhile Illegal Migrants (Determination) Tribunals, the apex court had set aside the high court judgments which affirmed the orders declaring certain persons as foreigners.
The top court had asked the tribunals concerned to decide the references afresh, uninfluenced by any earlier observation by the high court or by the tribunals.
It had said the State has a legitimate and compelling interest in ensuring that persons who are not legally entitled to claim Indian citizenship do not secure such status by misuse of process, by false claims or by taking advantage of procedural delays.
"At the same time, the determination of such status must be made through a process which is fair, lawful and reasoned," the top court had said.
(With inputs from PTI)
