STATELESSNESS IN INDIA (I) Statelessness and detention Religious identity based tests of citizenship will no doubt result in a systematic problem of statelessness. The processes described places 172 million Indian Muslims92 at risk of losing basic rights. While in some cases, the FTs have declared ‘foreigners’ to be “illegal Bangladeshi migrants”,93 most do not identify country of origin for repatriation. With nowhere to go, persons declared ‘foreigners’ face statelessness, indefinite incarceration, and in some cases death.94 The indefinite detention of people declared ‘foreigners’ or awaiting the opinion of FTs began in Assam in 2004.95 The condition in the detention camps is inhumane,96 leading to custodial deaths and suicides.97 The SCI has directed the release of persons who have completed three years or more in detention on two sureties of Rs. 100,000 each and mandatory collection of bio-metric data.98 During the COVID19 lockdown, the SCI relaxed some of these conditions.99 While prison inmates on other charges are released,100 many stateless detainees, including the elderly and sick, continue to languish at great risk to their health and life. Despite this conditional release, the prospect of indefinite detention and statelessness remain real. IV. Reliefs sought OHCHR’s proactive engagement with India, including through an intervention petition before the SCI, has provided invaluable strength and value for civil society and human rights activists fighting the impending mass statelessness of Muslims in India. Drawing 92 Rukmini S & Vijaita Singh, The Hindu, Muslim Population Growth Slows, August 25, 2015. In Assam Sanmilita Mahasangha & Ors. V. Union of India, WP(C ) 562/2012, the SCI directed the use of “specified territory” denoting Bangladesh in laws governing Foreigners Tribunal. 94 Subir Bhaumik, BBC, Assam NRC: Are India’s ‘unwanted people’ being driven to suicide?, June 28, 2019. See also,Talha Mujibi, The Citizen, Suicides over the NRC – Trend Analysis, March 7, 2020. 95 Jyoti Lal Chowdhury, The Dreaded List of Assam, Dated Nil. 96 Report on NHRC Mission to Assam's Detention Centres; The New Indian Express, 10 inmates of detention centres in Assam died in last 1 year: Govt March 17, 2020. See also, please refer to note 69. 97 Tahmina Laskar, CJP, What RTI inquiries reveal about Assam’s Detention Camps, July 4, 2019 98 The Leaflet, Supreme Court of India allows conditional release of declared foreigners languishing in Assam detention centres, May 11, 2019. 99 Suo Motu Writ Petition (C) No. 1 of 2020, order dated March 27, 2020; Sumir Karmarkar, Deccan Herald, Release 'declared foreigners' lodged in Assam detention camps: NGO to CJI, March 26, 2020. 100 Furquan Ameen, the Telegraph, SC issues order on Assam detainees, April 13, 2020. 93 13