Bangladesh, Nov. 21 -- In a development that has drawn both attention and concern, authorities in the Indian state of Assam have issued orders instructing five people to leave the country within 24 hours. All five — four women and one man — had previously been declared “foreigners” by a legal tribunal earlier this year. The directive represents the first publicly known use of the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act of 1950, a law passed in the aftermath of Indias Partition and long considered obsolete.

Police officials in Sonitpur district, where the orders were issued, say the individuals are currently untraceable. Local residents claim the five have not lived in the area for more than a decade. The gap between...