Centre tells SC that it doesn't want to shelter Rohingya Refugees

New Delhi, March 16: The government on Friday told the Supreme Court that India is already facing a "serious problem of infiltration" because of its porous border which is the "root cause of spread of terrorism" and it would not be in national interest for the court to issue a direction to stop the Rohingya refugees' deportation.

Filling an affidavit on pleas seeking to halt the alleged "pushback" of Rohingya refugees at the borders, the Home Ministry told the court that securing the country's borders is essentially an "executive function" and urged the court not to direct it and the state governments to allow foreigners to enter illegally.

"Securing the border of any sovereign nation, in accordance with law, is an essentially executive function and this Court would not issue a writ directing not only the Central government but all the state governments having a common border to ensure foreigners enter the territory of India," stated the affidavit.

The Central government also refuted allegations that the Border Security Forces (BSF) was using chili and stun grenades to push the refugees back, saying that these claims have been found to be "completely false, incorrect and far from the truth".