India, July 2 -- The Gauhati high court has upheld a tribunal's order declaring a 38-year-old Guwahati resident a foreigner, citing inconsistencies in the 15 documents he produced to prove he was an Indian and the burden of proof under Section 9 of the Foreigners Act, 1946. This Section states that the onus of proving citizenship lies on the person if a question arises about whether they are a foreigner.

"Though the petitioner has exhibited 15 (fifteen) documents as exhibits, the same does not help the petitioner to establish that he has been able to discharge his burden as required under Section 9...to prove that he is not a foreigner but an Indian citizen," said a bench of justices Kalyan Rai Surana and Shamima Jahan on June 30.

Aminu...