India slammed for forced return of Rohingya

Dozens of Rohingya Muslims have crossed the border into Bangladesh from India in recent days as New Delhi faces censure for deporting the persecuted minority to Myanmar.

Last week India handed a Rohingya family of five to Myanmar authorities, despite the army there being accused of genocide against the stateless group.

The forced return – the second in recent months – was criticised by the United Nations and rights groups, who accused India of disregarding international law and sending the Rohingya into danger.

India, which is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention, arrested 230 Rohingya in 2018 – the most in years – as Hindu hardliners called for the displaced Muslims to be deported en masse.

Bangladesh border officials and police said dozens of Rohingya had been detained crossing from India in the past week.

They were sent to refugee camps in the country’s south, where a million of the displaced Muslims live in hardship.

The round-ups in India, and fear of deportation to Myanmar, had fuelled the recent exodus, Bangladesh officials said.

“They told us they panicked after India started detaining Rohingya refugees and deporting them to Myanmar,” said Shahjahan Kabir, a police chief in the eastern Bangladeshi border town of Brahmanpara.

In Cox’s Bazar, a border district where some 720,000 Rohingya have sought refuge from a Myanmar army crackdown since August 2017, local officials said at least 57 people had arrived in recent days.

Amnesty International, among other rights groups, has blasted India for forcibly repatriating the Rohingya to Myanmar while persecution in Rakhine is ongoing.

Indian officials say around 40,000 Rohingya are living in India. The UN refugee agency says around 18,000 Rohingya are registered with the UNHCR. –