In a first, India deports 7 Rohingyas to Myanmar
04 Oct 2018
India, which normally closes its eyes on the aliens entering the country through its porus borders, has, for the first time, deported seven Rohingyas who entered the country illegally.
But, in a first, police have caught seven Rohingya Muslims and sent them through bus to the border on Wednesday to be deported to neighbouring Myanmar for illegal entry, officials and activists said.
An estimated 40,000 Rohingyas, a largely stateless Muslim minority, live in India after having fled violence and persecution in Buddhist-majority Myanmar’s Rakhine state over the years. The seven men being sent back had been held in prison since 2012 for illegal entry.
The Indian government hardly does anything to end the illegal entry of people from neighbouring countries although several of these, including the Rohingya immigrants, are posing a threat to national security.
Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta, additional director general of police in Assam, said the seven men would be handed over to Myanmar authorities.
“This is a routine procedure, we deport all illegal foreigners,” Mahanta said.
While the United Nations and some rights groups consider forcible return of the Rohingya was a violation of international law, the Indian government and authorities in border states do nothing to prevent the influx.
Hardly 200 Rohingya are reported to be detained in India on charges of illegal entry, according to the UN.