Will Dalai Lama, Tamil refugees be asked to go back, asks Omar Abdullah
Srimagar: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and working president of opposition National Conference (NC), Omar Abdullah, on Tuesday once again came out in support of the Rohingya Muslims who have taken refuge in different parts of the country. While lashing out at people who are demanding their deportation asked if those plugging their India were going to demand that the Tibetan Government in exile leave Indian shores immediately.
He wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter.com "Will Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka be sent back as punishment for Rajiv Gandhi's assassination." In another tweet, he said, "His holiness the Dalai Lama is going to find himself unwelcomed in his adopted home unless of course this xenophobia is selective."
In yet another tweet, Abdullah asked "So are those plugging their India for Indians line going to demand that the Tibetan Government in exile leave Indian shores immediately." He also said, "And while they are at it will Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka be sent back as punishment for Rajiv Gandhi's assassination."
Earlier during the day, ruling Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP)'s local leader and member of State Legislative Council Vikramaditya Singh had in a statement issued in Jammu expressed his concern over "inordinate delay" in deporting Rohingyas living in Jammu. Singh who is the son of veteran Congress leader Dr. Karan Singh said that his consistent stand on immediate deportation of illegal Rohingya refugees stands vindicated after the written submission of the Union Home Ministry before the Supreme Court.
"The Government of India in its affidavit in the Supreme Court not only called Rohingya refugees a threat to national security but also raised fears that the community could ultimately change the demographic profile of Indian States," he said.
He added, "Further, the Centre has also highlighted their links with terror organizations that has a direct bearing on Jammu and Kashmir".
The PDP leader questioned under what provision of law are these illegal migrants being allowed to settle in Jammu and avail benefits from the State. He demanded that the State government should immediately deport the Rohingyas from Jammu "as the people of Jammu region are unanimous on this issue."
Abdullah had while reacting to the Centre's stance that the Rohingya Muslims are a security threat said on Monday that it is a post-2014 development as far as their presence in Jammu and Kashmir is concerned. "This threat, at least in J&K, is a post-2014 development. No such intelligence reports ever came up for discussion in Unified HQ meetings," he had tweeted.
His statement evoked a strong reaction from Minister of State in the PMO. Dr. Jitendra Singh who termed his as a 'stray tweet'. He said, "We have every reason to trust the HM rather than pay attention to some stray tweets". Meanwhile separatist patriarch Syed Ali Geelani on Tuesday said that attributing "terrorism" to Rohingya Muslims is a grave injustice.
He said that Indian government instead of providing aid and assistance on humanitarian grounds to the Rohingya refugees has termed them as being a security threat.
"This is quite heart-breaking and painful. New Delhi by attaching terrorism and security threat labels to these hapless people who have fled their country to escape persecution is only doing grave injustice with them," he said.
