Human Rights Watch has accused the Indian government of violating international law and disregarding human rights in its recent campaign of expelling Rohingya refugees. In a statement, Elaine Pearson, the organization’s Asia director, criticized the ongoing deportations, stating that “those who escaped persecution in Myanmar are now being subjected to hostility and abuse in India.”
The rights group documented the experiences of nine Rohingya refugees now living in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar camps. Six of them, forcibly removed from India in May, reported being assaulted by Indian authorities, who also confiscated their mobile phones, cash, and UNHCR registration papers. The remaining three had fled from Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, and Delhi, citing fear of detention after police threats.
Among the cases highlighted, a woman expelled from Assam with her husband and children said that Border Security Force personnel beat her husband so severely he lost hearing in one ear. Another family from Tripura said police assaulted their four-year-old daughter and demanded 20,000 rupees before expelling them.
One particularly disturbing incident involved a group of 40 Rohingya—both Muslims and Christians—who were flown from Delhi to the Andaman Islands. Survivors said they were beaten by naval officers aboard a ship and later forced into the sea off Myanmar’s coast, left to swim ashore.
India is currently home to an estimated 40,000 Rohingya refugees, about half of whom are registered with the UN refugee agency. While India is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, it is still obligated under the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits returning individuals to places where they risk persecution.
According to Human Rights Watch, many Rohingya still residing in India are now living in fear. In Jammu, shelters were reportedly destroyed and at least 30 refugees were detained in May. In some cases, police ignored UN documentation and referred to refugees as “Bengalis,” questioning their status.
India’s Supreme Court is scheduled to examine the legal standing of the Rohingya in September, with the key question being whether they should be treated as refugees or “illegal entrants.” Earlier this year, the court refused to halt deportations and dismissed reports of Rohingya being abandoned at sea as “a beautifully crafted story.”
Human Rights Watch is calling on Indian authorities to immediately end the deportations, launch independent investigations into reported abuses, and formally recognise the Rohingya as refugees deserving of protection.
