The central government has asked four Northeast states – Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh – and the Assam Rifles to take appropriate action to stop influx of refugees from Myanmar.
The four Northeast states share borders with Myanmar which is marred by violence and civil unrest since the military took over the government on February 1.
The Union home ministry asked the states to check influx of refugees from Myanmar, officials said on March 12. The official said that deputy secretary, home, Krishna Mohan Uppu, in a letter to the chief secretaries of these four states and the director general of Assam Rifles, asked them to sensitise all law enforcement and intelligence agencies for taking prompt steps in identifying illegal migrants and initiate their deportation process without delay.
Uppu, in his March 10 letter, said that the ministry’s foreigners division had also issued instructions to chief secretaries on February 28 for asking law enforcement and intelligence agencies to take prompt steps for identifying illegal migrants, their restrictions to specific locations as per provisions of law, capturing their biographic and biometrics particulars, cancellation of fake Indian documents and legal proceedings, including initiation of deportation.
The letter reiterated that state governments and UT administrations have no powers to grant “refugee” status to any foreigner and India is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention of 1951 and its 1967 Protocol.
