Observing that any issue concerning the Rohingya ‘illegal’ immigrants in India was a matter of policy decision of the Union Government, the Delhi High Court has declined to entertain a plea that sought directions to the Delhi government to grant school admission to the children of such asylum seekers, who had come from Myanmar to India. While junking the plea, the High Court expressed concerns about its ramification on national security saying, “Let’s not get carried away. ‘Child doesn’t mean whole world will come over here. These are international issues, there are ramifications on security, nationality.”
According to a report, the court explained that since such children are not Indians, there were international implications involved and such matter required a policy decision which the Indian government was best-suited to decide on.
The Bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela disposed of the PIL. suggesting that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs should be approached to address the issue.
“We are not going to get involved in this. The first point of call cannot be High Court, first approach the government. What you cannot do directly, you cannot do indirectly. Court should not be a medium in this,” the Delhi High Court observed.
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It further explained that since the children are not Indians, there were international implications involved in the matter, which, in any case, the government would look into.
It also briefly referred to the recent judgement of the Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act of 1955, which deals with the grant of Indian citizenship to immigrants who are covered by the Assam Accord.
The court observed that the decision had led to a lot of turmoil and agitation in the State.
“In no country in the world will the court decide who is to be given citizenship,” it added.
The PIL was filed by a civil rights group known as Social Jurist.
It highlighted the issue of school admissions that the Rohingya refugee children were facing ever since they came to India.
The PIL also noted that even those Rohingya students who were admitted to government schools faced difficulties as the Delhi government had denied them statutory benefits like school uniforms and writing material, since their family did not have a bank account.
