Anjali Roy, 60, secures her voting rights after a decade of bureaucratic hurdles and personal tragedy. In Assam, her troubles began in 2012 when a Foreigners Tribunal in Silchar issued notices to her and her brother, questioning their Indian citizenship. Unable to provide the required documents, her brother was devastated and died by suicide, intensifying Roy’s resolve to prove her Indian identity.
Roy succeeded in proving her citizenship in 2015 after a three-year legal fight. However, her name was removed from the voter list in 2012 and she faced ongoing delays in getting it reinstated. Despite obtaining her citizenship certificate and repeatedly requesting the election officials to update the voter list before various elections, her appeals were ignored.
Roy mentioned that she was advised to wait before the 2016 assembly elections, the 2018 panchayat elections, the 2019 general elections, and the 2021 assembly elections. The omission from the voter list also meant she was denied essential government services, including food security benefits, an Aadhaar card, and the ability to open a bank account.
Roy’s lawyer, Anil Dey, confirmed that she had a citizenship card issued in 1956 in her father’s name. The family’s hardships continued, with her mother also receiving a citizenship notice at the age of 83. Roy said that she had fought for nearly a decade to regain her voting rights, despite having already proven her citizenship.
The ordeal took a severe emotional toll on Roy, who considered suicide at one point but refrained to avoid adding pressure on her children. She added that it seemed as though the government did not want to recognize her as an Indian. Her family members, except her husband, were also denied Aadhaar cards, compounding their struggles.
Social activist Kamal Chakraborty expressed shock at Roy’s situation, noting that her family had not immigrated from Bangladesh and thus had no documents from there. He said that, with the new rules of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, there were no other options available for her.
As of now, Roy’s name has been included in the voter list for the 2024 general elections, thanks to a by-election that allowed her to re-register. Despite the resolution of her voting rights issue, the years of struggle have left a lasting impact on her and her family.