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NRC: Excluded persons to get opportunity to prove citizenship, says Sonowal

CM appealed to people not to panic, assured of assistance ahead of NRC publication

Officials check the documents submitted by people, ahead of the release of the final draft of the NRC at an NRC Seva Kendra in Guwahati | PTI

Ahead of the publication of the final National Register of Citizens, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Friday asked people not to panic and said the state government will take all possible steps to help genuine Indians prove their citizenship and provide legal assistance.

Sonowal also said exclusion of anyone's name from the final list of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) to be published on Saturday, does not mean that he or she has become a foreigner as such a decision can be taken only by a Foreigners Tribunal after following proper legal process.

"No one should be worried. No one should panic. Government is here to take care of everyone. Even those who will be excluded from final list will get enough opportunity to prove their Indian citizenship," he told PTI in an interview.

When the draft NRC was published on July 30 last year, there was a huge controversy over the exclusion of 40.7 lakh people from it.