Manipal (The Hindu): P.B. Acharya, Governor of Assam and Nagaland, on Tuesday denied that he had stated that the country belonged only to the Hindus.

Replying to queries from presspersons after delivering a special lecture organised by the North East Studies Centre of Manipal University here, Mr. Acharya said that he was asked a question by presspersons with regard to National Register of Citizens of Assam a couple of days ago in Guwahati. He had expressed his concern over the delay in progress in the completion of the national register process.

However, the process was expected to be completed by December-end. Elections would be held in Assam in 2016 and it was necessary to have proper electoral rolls without infiltrators getting on them, he said.

Mr. Acharya had said that Bangladeshi Hindus coming to Assam were not infiltrators as they were fleeing persecution. They were refugees. The Hindus there had nowhere to go. Hence, they had to come to India.

The Union government had issued a notification that these Hindu refugees should be provided citizenship. “If members of other communities such as Christians, Jains and Buddhists came to India fleeing persecution, they too could be considered for citizenship,” Mr. Acharya said.