Retired Assam Teacher Commits Suicide Post Exclusion from NRC List

Protests against Das’ name being excluded from the NRC list broke out in Assam’s Kharupetia town.

Villagers check their names as Assam government published the part draft of National Register of Citizens (NRC). Image used for representation.

(Photo: IANS)

A 74-year-old retired school teacher-turned lawyer committed suicide in Assam on Sunday, 21 October, in fear of being labelled a “foreigner”, after being excluded from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) list.

Nirod Baran Das, who had taken up practicing law after retirement, was found hanging in his room by his family members, NDTV reported. Das had reportedly taken his life after returning from his morning walk.

In his suicide note, Das had written that he was forced to take this drastic step in order to “escape the humiliation of being marked as a foreigner after the NRC process,” his family told NDTV. 

In the note, he also said that he didn’t blame anyone for the step he was taking and only requested his family to return the money he owed to five people, which was Rs 1,200 each, the report added.

Das was the only one in his family out of his wife, three daughters, their husbands and their children, who was not included in the NRC list.

His family said that Das, who was a government school teacher for 34 years, was upset after being informed that he was labelled as a 'foreigner' and was served a notice from the Foreigners' Tribunal.

Protests Break Out Against Exclusion of Das’ Name

Following the news of Das committing suicide, schools, colleges, markets, shops, banks and private offices were closed in north-central Assam's Kharupetia town, upon the initiative of a students' group, which called for a day-long shutdown in the region, to protest against the exclusion of Das’ name from the NRC list, the report added.

Members of Das’ family and locals initially refused for the body to be taken for autopsy on Sunday, without action being taken against the NRC centre for labeling him as a “foreigner”.

Only once the district deputy commissioner and superintendent of police assured the family that a probe would be launched to find out why Das’ name was excluded from the NRC and why he was marked a foreigner, they relented, the report added.

(With inputs from NDTV)