Centre asks all states to prevent Rohingyas entry

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Saturday asked all the state governments, including the state of Jammu and Kashmir, to again take all necessary steps to prevent the entry of illegal migrants, including Rohingyas from Myanmar.

In a letter sent to Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary Bharat Bhushan Vyas and to the other state governments, Anuj Sharma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, called on them to "kindly review this matter (of the entry of illegal migrants) and issue instructions to take necessary steps and share updated information in the prescribed form .. as soon as possible.."

In particular, the Home Ministry expressed its serious concern over Rohingyas and other foreigners who have already entered and are illegally staying in India, including in Jammu and Kashmir.

The letter from the ministry said, "Such illegal migrations poses serious challenges and has security implications since some of the migrants have been found to have indulged in illegal activities and are vulnerable to radicalization."

It further states, "It has been brought to the notice of the Government that some of the Rohingyas/foreigners are involved in crimes, anti-national activities, money laundering, procuring fake/fabricated Indian documents; and some of them have illegally and fraudulently obtained Indian identity documents e.g. Pan Card, Voter Card, etc."

"Most of these persons have entered India illegally, and many of them have taken (the) help of organised groups of touts and agents," the letter added.

The Home Ministry's letter said that five detailed steps/instructions have been issued to all states from time-to-time for taking action against those Rohingyas/foreigners who have entered and are staying in India illegally.

These were as follows:

. Restrict them to specified identified locations and their activities/movements be strictly watched by State Police/Intelligence Agencies.

. Each one of them must be identified, personal particulars (name, date of birth, sex, place of birth, father/mother names, address in Myanmar/some other country, nationality, etc. may be captured and got signed by such illegal migrant/their guardian.

. Biometrics of illegal migrants, including Rohingyas be captured to ensure unique identification/de-duplication and to prevent impersonation in future. FRO must coordinate with UIDAI to ensure that no Aadhar Card other documents are issued to Rohingya immigrants, which may later help them in claiming to be Indian citizens.

.The personal particular forms/identity documents of such Rohingyas/foreigners to be shared with the Government of Myanmar through MEA for their nationality verification, issue of travel documents and repatriation to Myanmar.

. Keep a watch on their movement and activities and ensure action for their repatriation/deportation as per Law/Policy/Instructions.

The Home Ministry reminded the Government of Jammu and Kashmir of its letter of October 12, 2017, wherein the prescribed form for incorporating the personal details of Rohingyas/foreigners has been issued.

Saturday's letter comes almost six months after Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh appealed to all states to be vigilant on this issue.

He called upon states to be cautious and not allow any form of illegal migration to take place from across the border.

It is estimated that there are about 40,000 Rohingyas residing in India.

In January this year, the Centre told the Supreme Court that India could not become the "Refugee Capital of the World". The apex court was then hearing a petition of two Rohingya refugees who were demanding Indian citizenship and other rights.