The Chakmas and Hajongs are two marginalized communities living in Arunachal Pradesh, India. Recently, these communities have been subjected to alleged racial profiling and relocation threats. This has led National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to order the Ministry of Home Affairs and the State of Arunachal Pradesh to submit an action taken report within six weeks.
Background
Both the Chakma and Hajong communities have allegedly experienced hate crimes, police atrocities, and denial of rights and beneficiary programs. The Supreme Court, in 2015, directed that they should be granted citizenship, but this directive has yet to be implemented. Earlier, in 1996, the Court announced that the “life and personal liberty of every Chakma residing within the State shall be protected”. Despite these instructions and the fact that most of these community members were born and have lived peacefully in the State, their proposed relocation and a census announced in August 2021 by the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh is viewed as unwarranted.
The Chakma Development Foundation of India (CDFI) sought the urgent intervention of the NHRC against racial profiling of 65,000 Chakma and Hajong tribals through an illegal census which was scheduled to commence from December 31, 2021.
Racial Profiling and Special Census Controversy
Racial profiling involves the use of racial and cultural characteristics by government or police to identify individuals for investigation. The Chakma organizations argue that the proposed census amounts to racial profiling due to their ethnic origin, thereby violating Article 14 of the Indian Constitution and Article 1 of the International Convention on Elimination of Racial Discrimination ratified by India.
Chakmas and Hajongs Communities
The Buddhist Chakmas community mainly resides in Mizoram and Tripura, while the Hindu Hajongs are predominantly found in the Garo Hills of Meghalaya and adjoining areas of Assam. Both communities are migrants from the Chittagong Hill Tracts of formerly East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, displaced by the Kaptai dam on the Karnaphuli River in the 1960s. Many were settled in relief camps in Arunachal Pradesh between 1964 to 1969.
Citizenship Status
Of the 65,000 Chakmas and Hajongs living in Arunachal Pradesh, approximately 60,500 are citizens by birth as per Section 3 of the Citizenship Act, 1955, having been born before July 1, 1987, or descending from those born before this date. Unfortunately, the applications of the remaining 4,500 surviving migrants have not been processed to date. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act of 2019, which amends two sections of the 1955 Act, does not impact Chakma-Hajongs since they received permanent settlement by the Union of India in the 1960s.
Way Forward
The solution to this issue involves respecting the rule of law and the judgements of the Supreme Court. Political exploitation of the Chakma-Hajong issue must be curtailed. Adoption of these measures would facilitate the integration of these communities and uphold their fundamental rights.
Last Modified: February 15, 2024