The Supreme Court remarked on Thursday that if Rohingya refugees present in India are found to be foreigners under Indian law, they must be deported. .A Bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta and N Kotiswar Singh referred to the top court's previous order and remarked that the identity cards issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) may not be of any help to them."If they are foreigners as per the Foreigners Act, then they have to be deported," Justice Datta said. .The Court made these remarks while hearing a batch of petitions concerning the living conditions of Rohingyas in the country and those seeking their deportation..Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves and Advocate Prashant Bhushan appeared for some Rohingya refugees and informed the Court that last night, some of the refugees who had UNHCR cards were taken by police and deported. "They were with children and family. We have affidavits ready. This is shocking," Gonsalves said. .However, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta stated that India is not a party to the Refugee Convention and the UNHCR cards of the refugees are disputed..Gonsalves replied that they have been protected by the apex court for 10 years, but the action against them was taken hours before the hearing.Bhushan told the Bench that Myanmar is not accepting them, as they are stateless citizens. He added that the Supreme Court's earlier order, which says the UNHCR card is of no help to these refugees, is an interim order..However, the Court said that given its earlier order of April 2021, no further interim directions are required. In April 2021, the apex court had refused to give any relief against the deportation of Rohingya refugees settled in Jammu & Kashmir. The case will be heard next on May 14.
