Sir,
Random arrests of illegal Rohingya settlers from different Indian states remain a cause for concern among Indian security analysts. Mostly the detection of illegal aliens is more a matter of chance rather than the outcome of real time intelligence inputs.
Subsequent official action taken either by central law enforcing agencies or various State Governments, mostly ends in herding those arrested to special camps. If the official objective is to stop the continuing clandestine trafficking of Rohingyas to India, such nominal actions hardly improve existing levels of security that vary from state to state. None other than the Union Home Minister Amit Shah has accused the West Bengal Government of not doing enough to prevent illegal immigration into India, during his recent visit to the state.
While the ruling Trinamool Congress vigorously denies this, what cannot be denied is that the Rohingya Muslim exodus from Myanmar’s Rakhine province into neighbouring South Asian countries has emerged as an abiding irritant in regional political relations involving Myanmar, Bangladesh and India.
Also it is hard to dispel the general perception among commoners as well as political observers that Government of India is yet to come up with an adequate policy response to the crisis of the unending Rohingya exodus. What GOI authorities eventually want to do with the Rohingyas stranded here remains unclear, as months and years pass.
For the record, in July 2021, there was a declaration in Parliament that any foreigner found without identification on Indian soil would be regarded as a potential threat to national security. As for Rohingyas, the official stand was that all would be repatriated to Myanmar, where Burmese authorities must accept all responsibility for their former citizens. A brief analysis of some disturbing trends/incidents seen in Bangladesh following the arrival of large numbers of Rohingyas in the country, as reported in various local media accounts, assumes considerable significance. Dhaka-based experts are deeply anxious about the long term negative impact of Islamic extremism and fanaticism as seen among a section of Rohingyas.
Ashis Biswas
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