Rohingya

JK’s Rohingya list handed to Rajnath Singh amidst calls for deportation

Jammu: A list of over 6,000 Rohingya refugees living illegally in Jammu and Kashmir has been handed to Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh, according to a report in the The Telegraph.

The minister who was on a four-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, which ended yesterday, chaired a high lever security meeting on the issue of Rohingyas.

“We submitted an exhaustive list of the ethnic refugees living in the state. They might pose a security threat in a sensitive state where several terrorist organisations operate,” said an Intelligence Bureau officer, the report added.

According to various sources, the security agencies view the Rohingya refugees as a threat to India’s internal security. The agencies also suspect the Rohingyas might be vulnerable to being recruited by militant outfits operating in Jammu and Kashmir.

Jammu & Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti has said that at least 5,743 refugees were living in the state, majority of them in Jammu. The Rohingyas live in dilapidated huts and do menial jobs to sustain themselves.

“So far, no Rohingya refugee has been found involved in terror-related incidents. Seventeen FIRs have been registered against 38 Rohingyas for various offences, including those relating to illegal border crossings,” the chief minister had said.

However, no complaints about them being radicalised or involved in any major crime have surfaced.

Resentment against Rohingyas has been growing in the state of Jammu with political parties using billboards and public rallies to call for their deportation.

Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP), which leads the campaign to deport Rohingyas from the region, asked the Home Minister to ensure that all illegal immigrants, Rohingyas and Bangladeshis included, be deported in a “time-bound” manner.

Other entities in Jammu have even threatened to launch a “identify and kill” movement against the immigrants.

The Kashmir Valley, on the other hand, has seen multiple protests against the “persecution and genocide” of Rohingya Muslims. With a recent one turning violent after clashes with the police.

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