A 63-year-old man, Dilip Kumar Saha, was found dead in his Kolkata home on Sunday morning, with his family claiming he died by suicide due to fears of potential deportation to Bangladesh amid concerns surrounding the National Register of Citizens (NRC). Saha's family stated that he had been living in Kolkata since 1972 after fleeing from Nawabganj in Dhaka, and possessed valid documents, including a voter ID card.

According to police reports, Saha was discovered hanging from a ceiling fan in his room in the Anandapally West area of Regent Park in Kolkata. A suicide note was recovered from the scene, and preliminary investigations suggest that Saha took his own life due to stress and anxiety related to his citizenship status. His wife, Arati Saha, told reporters that her husband had been under severe stress, fearing he would be sent to a detention camp and deported to Bangladesh, where he had no remaining family.

The NRC is a register containing the names of Indian citizens. The government implemented the NRC in Assam to identify and expel illegal immigrants. In 2019, the final list of the NRC in Assam excluded nearly 2 million people, about 6% of Assam's population, effectively rendering them stateless. Individuals excluded from the NRC are required to appeal to Foreigners Tribunals to prove their citizenship, and the burden of proof lies on the individual to provide documentary evidence.

India is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention of 1951 or its 1967 Protocol, which protect refugee rights. While India lacks a national refugee protection framework, it continues to grant asylum to a large number of refugees from neighboring states and respects the UNHCR's mandate for other nationals.

The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), enacted in 2019, provides a pathway to Indian citizenship for religious minorities, excluding Muslims, who have fled persecution from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. The CAA has been criticized for violating Article 14 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees equal rights before the law to all individuals within India.

The incident has sparked political reactions, with local MLA and state power minister Arup Biswas expressing concern over the circumstances of Saha's death. Biswas criticized the central government's policies, stating that the fear of being thrown out of the country could drive a man to such extremes.

This is not an isolated incident. In March 2024, a youth in West Bengal died by suicide, with relatives claiming he feared the CAA would deny him citizenship. These incidents highlight the fear and uncertainty surrounding the NRC and CAA, particularly among vulnerable communities who worry about potential displacement, detention, and statelessness.