The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that certificates issued by the Gram Panchayat secretary or executive magistrate by itself is “no proof of citizenship” unless it establishes the legacy linkages with a person who is an Indian citizen. The top court said the certificates issued by the Gram Panchayat secretary merely acknowledges shifting of residence of a married woman from one village to another. It said “such proof will come only if the link between the claimant and the legacy person (who has to be a citizen) is established”. The court set aside the order of Gauhati High Court which made such certificates issued by the Gram Panchayat Secretary invalid and allowed the appeals against the order to a limited extent. It said that the sole test for inclusion in the NRC was citizenship under the Constitution and under the Citizenship Act.

Source: Hindustan Times December 05, 2017 14:15 UTC