INTRODUCTION A Foreigners Tribunal in Amingaon. © Amnesty International India In this briefing, Amnesty International India demonstrates how the Foreigners Tribunals commit grave human rights violations in Assam. Riddled with bias, prejudices and arbitrary decision-making, they pass vague orders rendering people stateless. The judiciary is complicit in perpetuating this exclusion and abuse. It also extensively delves into some of the key judgements passed by the Supreme Court of India and the Gauhati High Court that have entrenched discriminatory practices on ground and emboldened the Foreigners Tribunal to function in total disregard for fair trial standards, besides analysing 16 cases of persons who were arbitrarily deprived of their citizenship by the Foreigners Tribunals. It also provides a comparative analysis of the citizenship and immigration laws in India with international human rights law and norms. “Large scale illegal migration from East Pakistan/Bangladesh over several decades has been altering the demographic complexion of this State. It poses a grave threat both to the identity of the Assamese people and to our national security. Successive governments at the Centre and in the state have not adequately met this challenge.” 1 This is an excerpt from a report prepared by the Governor of Assam in 1998. The report warned the President of India and demanded suitable action “to avert the grave danger that has been building up for some time”. The former governor says in the report, “If not effectively checked, [Bangladeshis] may swamp the Assamese people and may sever the North-East land mass from the rest of India. This will lead to disastrous strategic and economic results”.2