Vilhelm Stokstad

Photographer

Questioned Identity

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Ruksha Khan, 29 years, is not o...ccepted by the NRC authorities.

1 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Ruksha Khan, 29 years, is not on the NRC final draft list. When her husband found out that he was not on the list he panicked and took his own life. Ruksha Khan is now left alone to care for their three children. She has documents showing her parents voted in 1966, a ration card, id card and tax listings proving her citizenship, but they are not accepted by the NRC authorities.

A man, 52 years old, not listed...al mistake and will get fixed.

2 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

A man, 52 years old, not listed in the NRC list. He is working a government job and has documents proving his family was owning land in the region as far back as 1903, but still he is not on the NRC Final Draft. He thinks it is a technical mistake and will get fixed.

Tangled roots on a tree outside Silchar, Assam, India.

3 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Tangled roots on a tree outside Silchar, Assam, India.

Nasuda Aktra Barbhuiya, 14 year...e errors such as a misspelling.

4 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Nasuda Aktra Barbhuiya, 14 years old. She and her mother are not in the NRC list, but the rest of the family is. They have provided her birth certificate as proof, but it is not accepted. Her mother's name has been left out due to a misspelling of her name on her marriage certificate. It is common that only one or two members of a family are excluded from the list, often for no obvious reason, or simple errors such as a misspelling.

Azmal Haque, an ex junior commi...s considered to be a foreigner.

5 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Azmal Haque, an ex junior commission officer for the Indian Army. He served in the army for 30 years before retiring, and has been given a presidential award for his service. He also gets his pension from the government. He is now excluded from the NRC and thus considered to be a foreigner.

Panorama of Barak river outside of Silchar, Assam.

6 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Panorama of Barak river outside of Silchar, Assam.

Fanigun Nessa, 67, has document...ner and is not on the NRC list.

7 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Fanigun Nessa, 67, has document proving both her father and herself voted in 1966, but still she is considered a foreigner and is not on the NRC list.

Tasnim Ahmed Barbhuija, 75 year... thereby branded as foreigners.

8 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Tasnim Ahmed Barbhuija, 75 years old. His grandfather was a "freedom fighter" in the non-cooperation movement in 1921, and Tasnim has the documents to prove it. His own name also appears on a voter list from 1966. But he and both his siblings are still not listed in the NRC, thereby branded as foreigners.

Hindu statues along a a road le... out of Guwahati, Assam, India.

9 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Hindu statues along a a road leading out of Guwahati, Assam, India.

Zutku Seikh, 68 years old. His ...ur children", he says.

10 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Zutku Seikh, 68 years old. His grandfather's name was in the 1951 NRC, and he himself voted in 1985 and has payed tax on his land and income since the 1960s. His name is not in the NRC and he is declared a d-voter, which means no one in his family of eight is in the list either, per association with him. "My head rings, I think of this all day, it is driving me mad. I worry about what will happen to us and our children", he says.

Nekbur Ali, 48 years old, was d...head who confirms his identity.

11 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Nekbur Ali, 48 years old, was declared as a d-voter (doubtful voter) by the Election Commission without explanation. He has his parent's voter list from 1966 as well as a letter from the village head who confirms his identity.

Suraj Kumi's family is ...ur dignity", she says.

12 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Suraj Kumi's family is from Bihar originally but has been living in Northeast India for around 100 years, first settling here as tea plantation workers. She has prodvided all sorts of documents proving her citizenship, but the NRC have confused the names of her and her husbands parents, and now she is excluded from the NRC list. She hails from a so called "tea tribe", a minority of tea laborers often lacking documentation of land ownership and voters rights. "I am born and grown with this water, air and earth, this is a violation of our dignity", she says.

A tea plantation outside Silchar, Assam, India.

13 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

A tea plantation outside Silchar, Assam, India.

Saimun Nessa, 52 years old. Her...d children", she says.

14 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Saimun Nessa, 52 years old. Her husband was put in a detention camp because of his d-voter status. She is also a d-voter. He died in the detention camp on October 4, 2018, after 11 months in detention. The police said the reason of his death was an asthma attack, but Saimun Nessa says he never had asthma or any respiratory problems. "He was the only earner, I have a terrible life now. We had to sell everything, cows, goats and chickens to afford to fight the case in court. We have two sons and six grand children", she says.

MD. Sanaullah, honorary captain...d has land documents from 1943.

15 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

MD. Sanaullah, honorary captain, served in the Indian Army from 1987 to 2017, before retiring. When the NRC list came out he found that he had an ongoing case in the Foreigners Tribunal. He was unaware of the case, which accused him of being an illegal immigrant. The Tribunal had received a falsified confession from someone claiming to be MD Sanaullah, but signed and dated at a time when he was stationed in Manipur with the Army. The document states that he came to India "looking for a better life" and entered the country "through secret roads". His father was a freedom fighter and has land documents from 1943.

Joy Muni Das, widow of d-voter.... listed in the NRC final draft.

16 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Joy Muni Das, widow of d-voter. Her husband hanged him self from a tree after he learned that their daughter was also declared a d-voter. Both him and Joy had fought their cases in court and won but was still not listed in the NRC final draft.

Rakhal Das, was labeled as a d-...of their relation to a d-voter.

17 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Rakhal Das, was labeled as a d-voter. He fought the case and won in the Foreigners Tribunal and was declared to be "not a foreigner". And yet, in 2018, his name was excluded in the NRC final draft list. His two sons are also not in the NRC because of their relation to a d-voter.

Jogendrea Das was labeled as a ...documents proving he is Indian.

18 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

Jogendrea Das was labeled as a d-voter and now he and because of this he and his family are excluded from the NRC. He has documents proving he is Indian.

Questioned Identity

19 of 19 © 2024 Vilhelm Stokstad

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Thumbnail of Ruksha Khan, 29 years, is not on_accepted by the NRC authorities.

Thumbnail of A man, 52 years old, not listed _cal mistake and will get fixed.

Thumbnail of Tangled roots on a tree outside Silchar, Assam, India.

Thumbnail of Nasuda Aktra Barbhuiya, 14 years_le errors such as a misspelling.

Thumbnail of Azmal Haque, an ex junior commis_us considered to be a foreigner.

Thumbnail of Panorama of Barak river outside of Silchar, Assam.

Thumbnail of Fanigun Nessa, 67, has document _gner and is not on the NRC list.

Thumbnail of Tasnim Ahmed Barbhuija, 75 years_, thereby branded as foreigners.

Thumbnail of Hindu statues along a a road lea_g out of Guwahati, Assam, India.

Thumbnail of Zutku Seikh, 68 years old. His g_our children", he says.

Thumbnail of Nekbur Ali, 48 years old, was de_ head who confirms his identity.

Thumbnail of Suraj Kumi's family is f_our dignity", she says.

Thumbnail of A tea plantation outside Silchar, Assam, India.

Thumbnail of Saimun Nessa, 52 years old. Her _nd children", she says.

Thumbnail of MD. Sanaullah, honorary captain,_nd has land documents from 1943.

Thumbnail of Joy Muni Das, widow of d-voter. _t listed in the NRC final draft.

Thumbnail of Rakhal Das, was labeled as a d-v_ of their relation to a d-voter.

Thumbnail of Jogendrea Das was labeled as a d_ documents proving he is Indian.

Thumbnail of Questioned Identity

Public Project

Questioned Identity

Copyright Vilhelm Stokstad 2024

Date of Work Oct 2018 - Oct 2018

Updated Dec 2021

Location Assam, India

Topics Abstract, Arrests and Prosecutions, Black and White, Civil Rights, Community, Conceptual, Discrimination, Documentary, Elections, Essays, Faith, Family, Fear, Fine Art, Freedom, Hinduism, Human Rights, Illustrations, Immigration, India, Assam, Narendra Modi, Religious discrimination, Civil Rights, Bengali, Bangladesh, Indians, Assam, Islam, Migration, Minority, Photography, Photojournalism, Politics, Portraiture, Racism, Religion

Race, religion and statelessness in Modi´s India.

100,000s of Indians are being stripped of their citizenship. In the northeastern state of Assam, religious and linguistic discrimination is producing a new stateless minority in Asia.

The photo series for this story combines portraits with images of documents used to prove the person's identity. All the images for one portrait have been taken at the same time and location and then combined using a mixture of techniques such as blending modes and opacity in photoshop.

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