Image Courtesy: zeenews.india.com
Amid the ongoing protests over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), Union Minister of State (MoS) Jitendra Singh has said that the next step of the Central Government would be to deport the Rohingyas from the country.
Speaking at a function in Jammu on Friday he said, “The CAA is applicable across the country including in Jammu and Kashmir. By implication, what will happen is that the next move will be in relation to the Rohingyas.”
“Jammu has a sizeable population of Rohingyas and a list would be prepared and their biometrics would also be collected. They’ll have to leave India and details are being worked out. CAA doesn’t give them leverage. The government is considering ways to deport them,” he added.
“They (Rohingyas) are not part of the six religious minorities in three neighbouring states. They are from Myanmar. So, they have to go back as they are not eligible for Indian citizenship under this Act,” he further said.
According to the Home Ministry, more than 13,700 foreigners, including Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshi nationals are settled in Jammu and Samba districts, where their population has increased by over 6,000 between 2008 and 2016.
In 2017, the Central Government had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court in 2017 describing around 40,000 refugees to be a “security threat” saying they must be deported to Myanmar.
Singh also said, “The CAA has been implemented in Jammu and Kashmir the day it was passed (by Parliament). There are no ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’, by implementation (of the CAA in Jammu and Kashmir), what would happen here is that the next move would be in relation to (the deportation) of Rohingyas,” Singh said at a function here.”
However, it seems that Singh is misinformed as even though the CAA has been passed by the Parliament and assented by the President of India, the Gazette notification is yet to mention a date from when the law will be in force. Once the date is notified, it is only then that it will be enforceable in all states and UTs including Jammu and Kashmir.
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