‘Can’t trust Rohingyas, they are not Indians’, says MoS for home affairs

Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said the Rohingyas might be having “some links” with terror outfits, though he did not elaborate if the government has any specific input about the same.

India cannot trust Rohingyas as they are “illegal migrants” and not Indian nationals, Union minister of state for home affairs Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said in New Delhi on Thursday.

A Rohingya boy carries a child after crossing the Bangladesh-Myanmar border in Teknaf, Bangladesh, on September 1, 2017. (Reuters Photo)

“Let me make it very clear... they are not Indians, they are illegal migrants. We can’t trust them,” Ahir said while speaking with a news channel.

“These people had come in small numbers and the then Indian government sheltered them. But now the government has decided not to keep them,” Ahir said.

“It is not in nation’s interest to keep them here. The government will not yield (to keep Rohingyas) under any pressure,” he added.

Ahir said that the Rohingyas might be having “some links” (with terror outfits), though he did not elaborate if the government has any specific input about Rohingyas’ links to any specific terror organisation.

“They may be having some links, that is why these things are being talked about... The government feels that they pose a danger,” the minister said.

India has drawn flak from the UN Human Rights Council over the issue.