New Delhi: Central Government is planning to deport all Rohingya Muslims living in India. According to one of the estimates, 40000 Rohingya Muslims are residing in India.
Talking to a news agency on Rohingya Muslims in India, Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs said that all of them are illegal immigrants. He also termed the same for those who are registered with the UN refugee agency.
He told Parliament that Central Govt. had asked State authorities to identify and deport all illegal immigrants including Rohingya.
According to the report published in NDTV, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has issued identity cards to around 16,500 Rohingya Muslims who are residing in India. However, Mr. Rijiju said that UNHCR registration was irrelevant. Justifying his stand, he said that India is not a signatory to the accord on refugees.
Meanwhile, on Monday, UNHCR’s India office said that not sending refugees back to the place where there is a danger to the lives is a part customary international law and it is binding on all the states whether it signed accord or not. No official notice received to deport Rohingya refugees, UNHCR’s India office added.
It is also reported that India is in talks with Bangladesh and Myanmar about the deportation plan. However, it would be difficult to deport them as Myanmar want to scrutinize all Rohingyas before allowing them back in the country.
Who are Rohingyas?
Rohingyas is a Muslim minority group of Myanmar who is facing atrocities in their home land. Myanmar does not acknowledge these persecuted Rohingyas as their citizen and restricts their rights. Basic life support needs are denied to them. Myanmar considers them ‘Bengalis’ and alleges that they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. On the other hand, Bangladesh denies acknowledging them as their citizen.
After mass violence in 2012, more than one lakh Rohingyas were forced to leave Myanmar. Many were forced to work as bonded labour while others are trafficked. Due to non-availability of documents, many landed in jails too.
Read also: Hyderabad: Rohingya Muslims suppressed from fundamental needs of life, now turn hazardous
Rohingyas in India
In India, Rohingyas are forced to reside as a refugee. These refugees are living in a very bad condition. They reside in a house of cardboard, plywood and tarpaulin. The area in which they reside is thick with flies.
In India, they prefer Hyderabad, Jammu, Mewat, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi to take shelter. They are provided with long-stay visas and UNHCR cards.