Centre assures SC that Rohingya Muslims will not be deported

Solicitor-general Mehta, however, said that all illegal migrants in the country could not be granted refugee status and India could not become the world capital for refugees

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Legal Correspondent   |   TT   |  New Delhi   |  27.03.21 : The Centre on Friday assured the Supreme Court that Rohingya Muslims would not be deported unless the Myanmar government identifies and agrees to take them back.

The assurance was given to a bench headed by Chief Justice of India S.A. Bobde by solicitor-general Tushar Mehta during the course of a hearing. The court was dealing with the plea of Mohd Samiullah, a Rohingya Muslim, seeking a stay on the deportation of Rohingya refugees from Jammu and Kashmir.

The bench, also comprising Justices A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian, took on record the government’s assurance but refused to hear the submission sought to be made by UN special rapporteur Tendayi Achiume after senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the Jammu and Kashmir government, opposed it. Salve objected to Achiume being heard in the matter on the ground of jurisdiction.

“We have very serious objections on this. Please don’t go into this. The UN is not subject to your Lordships’ jurisdiction. Our government has also issues with the UN special rapporteur,” Salve said.

Achiume had last year filed an application opposing the deportation of Rohingya Muslims on the ground that they would be subjected to torture and genocide in Myanmar.

The bench told senior advocate C.U. Singh, appearing for Achiume, that since the Jammu and Kashmir government had certain objections to the UN special rapporteur being heard, it would not like to hear him at this juncture.

“We will not hear you (Achiume). There is serious objection. We will see when to hear you,” Justice Bobde told Singh.

During Friday’s arguments advocate Prashant Bhushan strongly opposed the deportation of the refugees on the ground that they would be subjected to genocide as a military junta was now in power in Myanmar.

Solicitor-general Mehta, however, said that all illegal migrants in the country could not be granted refugee status and India could not become the world capital for refugees.