Rohingya as a threat to country’s security is a post-2014 development: Omar Abdullah

Reacting to the Centre’s submission before the Supreme Court that it sees Rohingya refugees as a potential security threat for the country, former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah said on Monday the Centre’s stand is a post-2014 phenomenon .

On his Twitter handle Omar wrote: “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.”

On Monday, the Centre claimed before the apex court that many Rohingya refugees have links with the global terror outfit Islamic State as well as Pakistan’s spy agency ISI. It further argued that allowing them to stay in India will pose a security threat to the country.

It is estimated that there are nearly 7,000 Rohingya in Jammu and Kashmir.

West Pak refugees unhappy

However, Omar’s concerns about the Rohingya has not gone down well with refugees from West Pakistan who, despite having settled in J&K since 1947, have been denied citizenship rights. They argue that parties based in Kashmir have never voiced their concerns appropriately.

Labha Ram Gandhi, chairman of West Pakistan Refugees Action Committee 1947, alleged that Rohingyas are being settled in the region to change its demographic profile. “Rohingyas might have been a persecuted community but they are being rehabilitated in Jammu under a sinister plan. How is it possible for them to enter India via Bangladesh and then travel hundreds of miles, all the way, to reach Jammu? They are being helped by agents, who bring them here,” Gandhi claimed.

He also claimed that they appraised Union home minister Rajnath Singh about their concerns during his recent visit. 

According to official data, in 1947, a total of 5,764 families, comprising 47,915 people, migrated from West Pakistan and settled in Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts. Today, they are nearly 1 lakh in number.