Supreme Court bans deportation of women declared ‘foreign’ in Assam, seeks response from Center

The Supreme Court has stayed the deportation of two women from Assam, Saleha Khatoon and Sarbhanu Begum. After being declared foreigners, both the women were put in the detention center. The Foreigners Tribunal had declared these two women as foreigners, after which the court has sent a notice to the Central Government in this matter and said that no action will be taken against these two women till the next hearing.

The case was heard by the vacation bench of the Supreme Court, which included Justice Vikram Nath and Justice V Mohana. Apart from Saleha and Sarbhanu Begum, the court has taken cognizance of the petitions of two more women. The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Central Government asking it to file a reply on this sensitive matter. After hearing the arguments of the petitioners, the court has sought clarification from the Centre.

Will not be deported until the next hearing

The court has fixed the next hearing on July 16. The court said that if Saleha and Sarbhanu remain in custody now, they will not be sent to their native country till the next date. Actually, this matter is related to the investigation of the Foreigners Tribunal of Assam, in which these women were declared foreigners. After being kept in the detention centre, a petition was filed against this detention in the Supreme Court.

The High Court had rejected the application

Saleha Khatoon and Sarbhanu Begum had approached the High Court to protest against the government declaring them foreigners, but their petition was rejected by the High Court. After which the matter reached the Supreme Court, where during the hearing the court put a stay on his deportation.

It has been told in the application of Saleha Khatoon that she is a 50 year old poor and uneducated woman, who is lodged in Goalpara Detention Center in Assam since March 2, 2026. He claimed that the names of his father Ahsan Ali and mother Korpuljan are recorded in voter records before 1971 and in the legacy data of NRC. She calls herself an Indian and has also presented evidence for this. He says that he is being considered an outsider in his own country. Now everyone’s eyes are on the next hearing of the Supreme Court, which has been fixed for July 16.