Party spokesperson Kanwar Pal Singh said by definition all refugees are ‘illegal’ until the respective state grants them ‘refugee status’ and allow them to stay. “Even Tibetans, Afghans and Lankans who came from their respective countries fearing persecution were illegal the day they crossed over. The government of the day gave them legal sanction some for political reasons and others on humanitarian grounds, he said.
He asked the present dispensation to grant Rohingya Muslims the refugee status on the lines of India granted to Tibetans, Afghans and Lankans. As India has accommodated refugees coming from Tibet, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, issue of Rohingyas refugees should also be considered in the same spirit.
Taking the minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju to task, he slammed the BJP led government for handling Rohingya Muslims with blinkered vision and communal mindset. Highly critical of the government's plans to deport Rohingya Muslims, he said the Modi dispensation was hell bent to do so only because of their religion. “The threat perception claimed by GoI sounds hollow”. He asked the United Nations to do more than lip service and save the Rohingyas from further persecution and provide resources for their basic needs and settlement.