India to deport seven Rohingyas to Myanmar on Thursday

India is scheduled to deport seven Rohingyas to Myanmar on Thursday who have been currently brought to Imphal, Manipur. The seven people will be taken to Moreh border where they'll be handed over to Myanmar authority.

Earlier, they were lodged in the Silchar Detention centre in Assam.

"Seven Myanmarese nationals lodged in Silchar will be deported on October 4. The travel permits have come. The deportation will take place via Moreh (a border town) in Manipur,” news agency ANI quoted a senior official of the home and political department of the state.

Of the existing 900-odd inmates in the six detention camps in the state, most are individuals who were “declared foreigners” at the 100 Foreigners Tribunals in Assam. This is the first time Rohingya immigrants will be sent back to Myanmar from India.

A UN human rights expert has expressed alarm at the government’s plan saying India ought to refer the seven persons to UN refugee agency before taking any decision on sending them to Myanmar.

"A UN human rights expert has expressed alarm at the Indian Government’s plan to deport seven Rohingya men to Myanmar, saying their forcible return could constitute refoulement which violates international law," the body said, quoting the expert. "The Indian government has an obligation to refer Rohingyas under their custody to the UN refugee agency so their protection needs can be assessed and proper information provided to them about their rights."

The seven Rohingyas set to be sent back were arrested in 2017. " Our police team is going to drop them off at Moreh border where they'll be handed over to Myanmar authority," Deepak Kumar, Inspector General (Law and Order) told news agency ANI.