Last Updated:March 06, 2026, 22:42 IST

Deepali Das from Cachar, once declared a foreigner, has gained Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

In a significant development in Assam’s efforts to address the issue of illegal infiltration, a woman from Cachar district in southern Assam who had earlier been declared a foreigner by a Foreigners’ Tribunal has now been granted Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). Despite being declared a foreigner earlier, she has secured citizenship under the provisions of the CAA.

The woman, identified as Deepali Das (60), is a resident of Dholai in Cachar district. She was arrested on May 5, 2019, on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant. Her arrest followed an investigation report submitted by police officer Ajmal Hossain Laskar.

Following proceedings before the Foreigners’ Tribunal, Deepali Das was declared a foreigner and was subsequently lodged in the detention camp located inside Silchar Central Jail, where she spent nearly two years.

In 2021, she was released after the Supreme Court directed authorities to grant bail to detainees who had spent two years in detention centres, a measure introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

After her release, Deepali Das applied for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in February 2025. Her legal case was handled by Silchar-based advocate Dharmananda Deb, while social activist Kamal Chakraborty also assisted her during the process.

According to advocate Deb, Deepali Das had entered India in 1988 after facing religious persecution in Bangladesh. Under the provisions of the CAA, individuals belonging to specified religious minority communities who fled persecution in neighbouring countries and entered India before December 31, 2014, are eligible to apply for Indian citizenship.

During the verification process, documents were submitted establishing that Deepali Das was originally a resident of the Sylhet district of Bangladesh and had entered India well before the stipulated cut-off date. Evidence was also presented confirming her Hindu identity.

After thorough scrutiny and verification of the submitted documents, authorities approved her application for citizenship.

As per the official decision, Deepali Das has now been recognised as an Indian citizen with effect from February 8, 1988. The ruling also validates all the documents in her possession, including her Voter ID and Aadhaar card, declaring them legally valid.

Earlier, under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, a 40-year-old woman from Sribhumi district, who had entered India from Bangladesh in 2007, was also granted Indian citizenship. A 61-year-old man from Cachar district has similarly received citizenship under the Act, officials confirmed.

The woman from Sribhumi, who uses the surname Banerjee, had arrived in Silchar in 2007 to accompany a family member seeking treatment at Silchar Medical College and Hospital. During her stay, she met a man from Sribhumi district (formerly Karimganj), married him, and later settled permanently in Assam.

Legal experts described her case as particularly significant, noting that citizenship through the registration route under the CAA remains rare in Assam. The couple later settled in the state and have a son. Although her extended family continues to reside in Chattogram, Bangladesh, she had long sought Indian citizenship.

Her first application, was reportedly rejected due to administrative confusion caused by the delimitation exercise ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

She was eventually granted citizenship under Section 5(1) (c), read with Section 6B of the Citizenship Act, 1955, which allows a person married to an Indian citizen to register as an Indian citizen after residing in India for seven years.

The development also comes amid Assam’s continuing efforts to tackle illegal immigration. According to government data, since 2021 more than 32,000 foreigners have been detected in the state, while 1,416 individuals have been deported so far.

The state government continues to pursue its policy of “detect, deport and delete" to address the issue of illegal infiltration, while the CAA provides a legal pathway to citizenship for eligible persecuted minorities who entered India before the prescribed cut-off date. Assam is actively continuing its “Detect, Deport and Delete" policy, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma emphasizing zero tolerance against illegal infiltration from Bangladesh.

Recent operations in late 2025 and early 2026 have resulted in the apprehension and pushback of dozens of illegal migrants. The state is utilizing strict measures, including the 1950 Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) framework, to identify and remove declared foreigners.

News india Declared Foreigner In Assam, Woman Gets Citizenship Under CAA

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