Amidst growing international condemnation of Myanmar over the violence unleashed on Rohingya Muslims, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj called Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to assure her of India’s help in dealing with the influx of refugees. Sushma said the Indian Government was trying to convince Myanmar to take back its people.
“India’s position is the same as Bangladesh’s over the Rohingya issue. She (Sushma Swaraj) also spoke about India pushing Myanmar both bilaterally and multilaterally so that they take back their people. What India is saying is that Myanmar must stop atrocities against Rohingyas,” Bangladesh PM’s Deputy Press Secretary Nazrul Islam said in Dhaka.
He added that Sheikh Hasina has called upon the Myanmar Government to allow thousands of Rohingyas to return to their homes. Hasina is expected to raise the Rohingya issue at the UN General Assembly in New York.
While Bangladesh has taken in a huge number of Rohingya refugees, India on Thursday airlifted 53 tonnes of relief material, including food and other necessary items, to Bangladesh. More such consignments are likely to be sent in the coming days. India’s High Commissioner in Dhaka, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, said India will provide 7,000 tonnes of relief material to Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the Centre will file an affidavit in the Supreme Court on Monday on its plans to deport Rohingya Muslims. “We will file the affidavit in the Supreme Court on September 18,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a function.
The SC had asked the Government to file the affidavit on a plea against the deportation of illegal Rohingya Muslim immigrants to Myanmar. The plea was filed by noted lawyer Prashant Bhushan on behalf of two Rohingya immigrants, Mohammad Salimullah and Mohammad Shaqir, who are registered as refugees under the United Nations High Commission of Refugees (UNHCR), claimed they have taken refuge in India after escaping from Myanmar due to widespread discrimination, violence and bloodshed against the community there. They challenged their deportation on several grounds, including violation of international human rights conventions.