Bravo India! Government Says Country Cannot Become Refugee Capital of World

The central government has taken a very bold stance that must be applauded by every right thinking citizen. The Centre has told the Supreme Court that it does not want the country to become the refugee capital of the world.

  Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told this to a bench, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, which was hearing a fresh plea by two Rohingya refugees alleging that the BSF was using chili and stun grenades to stop the refugees from entering India.

The ASG said he needed time to respond to the allegations made by the refugees. He, however, said not everyone can be allowed to cross the border and these matters are best left to the government to decide.

The lawyer appearing for the refugees said the government must be prevented from stopping more Rohingyas from entering India because of the persecution faced by them in Myanmar. The court gave the Centre time till the 7th of March to respond to the fresh plea.

The Rohingya crisis has sparked a debate in the country for a time and has occupied central space in the national debate from time to time. There are two groups in India – one that see Rohingyas as "refugees” and another as “illegal infiltrators". A majority opinion inclines towards the view that Rohingya Muslims are certainly not entitled to the refugee status.

For one, India is an extremely densely populated country and it doesn't need more people. . India has accepted Tibetan refugees because Tibet was occupied by China. Besides, there was a humanitarian and cultural basis to what we did. Rohingyas cannot claim any such affinity.

The Indian government has already termed them as illegal immigrants who "will be deported". It is true that some organizations, mainly human rights bodies, are raising pith in the name of humanitarian cause about the planned deportation of Rohingyas from India. But it is because they want to appear politically correct in the world. The arrival of Rohingyas carry a concern with them that there are terrorists hiding in that big pool of people. Besides, India is not signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention therefore it is not obliged to accept them.

The government of India must be lauded as it has maintained its stand that the "issue of national security is involved with regard to illegal immigration which our country cannot undermine". The government had on August 9 told Parliament that more than 14,000 Rohingyas, registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, stay in India. However, aid agencies estimate there are about 40,000 Rohingyas in the country.

Illegal immigrants cannot claim fundamental rights which are otherwise available even to non-citizens, the Centre had told the Supreme Court early this month in its fresh response to the PIL of two Rohingya refugees challenging their deportation to Myanmar.

The National Human Rights Commission had in August issued a notice to the Centre, saying "India has been home to refugees, for centuries" and from the human rights angle, its "intervention is appropriate" in the matter.

The latest stand of the government has to be seen in this light.