Jitendra Bahadur Singh | Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu | Edited by Kritika Banerjee
New Delhi, September 21, 2017 | UPDATED 12:48 IST
Home Minister Rajnath Singh shared the dais with NHRC chief H L Dattu at an event where the two took contrasting stand on Rohingya deportation.
Rajnath Singh spoke on Rohingya deporation at an NHRC event.Union Home Minister 
Rajnath Singh today said that Rohingyas who have come from Myanmar are not refugees as they have not followed the procedures to get the refugee status.
Speaking at a programme organised by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Rajnath Singh asked why some people are objecting to the deportation nof Rohingyas when Myanmar is ready to take them back.
At the same event, NHRC chief H L Dattu said that the human rights commission will "plead the cae of 40,000 Rohingyas on humanitarian ground". "(We) cannot comment on government policy. We are helping them (Rohingyas) because they are being persecuted in Myanmar," the NHRC chief said.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that illegal immigrants cannot be treated as refugees on the ground of human rights. "Human rights ka hawala de kar illegal immigrants ko refugee batane ki galti nahi ki jaani chahiye," Rajnath Singh said.
The Home Minister said that the resources in the country are first meant for its citizens and before worrying about others' human rights, the human rights of Indians should be considered first. "Bharat ke andar jo bhi resource hai uss par Bharatiya ka adhikar hai. Doosron ke manvadhikar ki chinta karne se pehle aapne manvadhikaron ki baat karni chahiye," Rajnath Singh said.
He said that the truth is that those who have come to India are not refugees. "Myanmar se Bharat ghus aaye ye Rohingyas refugee nahi hai iss sachchai ko hume samajhna chahiye," the Home Minister said.
The Home Minister said that Rohingyas have not followed the due procedures through which refugee status is granted to immigrants. "Refugee status prapt karne ke liye ek process hota hai aur inmein se kisi ne iss procedure ko follow nahi kiya hai," he said.
Rajnath Singh said that India will not be "violating any international law by deporting Rohingyas from India as it is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention".
"Principle of re-foulement applies on those who have taken asylum in India. No Rohingya has applied for asylum in India," the Home Minister said.
He said that "people should understand that one aspect of illegal immigration of Rohingyas is related with national security".
The Centre recently filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court defending its decision to deport 40,000 Rohingya immigrants and said they pose a "security threat" to the country.