JUDGMENT :

N. Kotiswar Singh, J.

1. Heard Mr. U. Dutta, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Ms. L. Devi, learned Standing counsel for the NRC as well as Ms. J. Sarma, learned Central Government Counsel, Ms. B. Das, learned Standing counsel for the Election Commission of India and Mr. G. Sarma, learned Standing counsel for the Foreigners Tribunal.

2. The present writ petition has been filed, being aggrieved by the Opinion dated 24.05.2018 expressed by the Foreigners Tribunal No. 2, Morigaon, Assam in Case No. F.T.(C) No. 09/16 arising out of Police Reference I.M.(D).T. Case No. 563/2003 dated 18.07.2003 declaring the petitioner to be a foreigner of post 25.03.1971 stream, and thereby directing the authorities to delete the name of the petitioner from the voters list, and also subsequent order dated 20.09.2019 passed by the same Tribunal dismissing the petition seeking review of the earlier opinion dated 24.05.2018 based on certain corrected voters lists and land documents.

3. Without going much into the detail facts of the case, it would suffice to mention herein only few of the relevant facts. A proceeding was initiated in terms of a reference made by the Superintendent of Police (B), Morigaon mentioned above, to the learned Chairman, Illegal Migrant (Determination) Tribunal, Nagaon against the petitioner, Md. Abdul Salam S/o- Late Sekendar Ali, village-Mahmara Reserve, P.S. Lahorighat, District- Morigaon, Assam, suspecting him to be a foreigner who entered India (Assam) after 25.03.1971. Subsequently, the said reference was transferred to the Foreigners Tribunal No. 2, Morigaon, Assam in Case No. F.T.(C) No. 09/16.

4. The petitioner being duly notified, appeared before the Tribunal and submitted his written statement along with the relevant documents. The petitioner, along with other documents, filed certified copies of the voters lists of 1966 and 1970. In the voters list of 1966, the name of the petitioner's grandfather was recorded as "Abbas Ali, S/o. Babujan" and his age was shown to be 45 years and the father of the petitioner was shown as "Sekendar Ali, S/o. Abbas Ali" and his age was shown to be 50 years. Similarly, in the voters list of 1970, the name of the petitioner's grandfather "Abbas Ali S/o. Babujan", was again shown as 50 years of age and the name of his father "Sekendar Ali, S/o. Abbas Ali" was shown to be 55 years old.

5. The petitioner unwittingly without verifying the correctness of the age entered in the certified copies of these voters lists of 1966 and 1970 filed these and other documents and exhibited the same. Unfortunately, when the matter was considered by the Tribunal, the Tribunal opined that the grandfather's age was 45 (forty five) in the 1966 voters list and the father's age was 50 (fifty). Similarly, the grandfather's age was recorded as 50 (fifty) in the 1970 voters list and the age of the petitioner's father was recorded as 55 (fifty five) years. Thus, the father was shown to be 5 (five) years older than his grandfather. Therefore, the learned Tribunal disbelieved these documents as unreliable and untrustworthy as can be seen from the Opinion dated 24.05.2018. The relevant portions of the opinion of the learned Tribunal reads as follows:-

"The Ext. "A" and Ext. "B" are the voter lists of 1966 and 1970 respectively and the proceedee claim that the name at Sl. No. 332 Sekendar Ali age 50 (fifty) years in his father and the name Sekendar Ali at Sl. No. 332 aged about 55(fifty five) years in the voter list of 1970 is also his father. On scrutiny of the voter lists of 1966 and 1970 it is found that in the voter list of 1966 the name of one Abbash Ali age 45 (forty five) years has been recorded at Sl. No. 330 and in the voter list of 1970 also the name Abbash Ali age 50 (fifty) years has been recorded at Sl. No. 330 of the voter list. The proceedee neither in his W/S nor in his evidence has explained his relationship with Abbash Ali and the relationship of Abbash Ali with Sekendar Ali whom he