It has to be said before stating anything else that India has always welcomed not just outsiders but even invaders like the most notorious Pakistani invader – General Pervez Musharraf who not just masterminded Kargil war in which we lost more than 600 soldiers as per official figures even though the actual figure is much more but also ensured that he himself even before the actual war started penetrated about 15-16 km inside Indian territory just a night before to boost the morale of Pakistani soldiers and terrorists to slaughter Indian soldiers in the worst possible manner which one cannot even dream of as he himself acknowledges also most proudly in front of media. We all saw how Captain Saurav Kalia and 5 soldiers of 4 Jat Regiment who first intercepted the intruders were caught alive after they ran out of ammunition and were most brutally tortured and their eyes were gouged out with hot iron rods, similarly their nose, ears were not spared, their body bore signs of cigarette torture, they were beaten mercilessly for not just 2 hours or 2 days but for more than 22 days which means nearly a month and their private organs were also not spared and then their dead bodies were handed over to India. Yet despite all this we also saw how India most foolishly chose to ignore everything and yet invite that same Pakistani invader – Gen Musharraf within just about three to four months for Agra talks which had to fail as he wanted India to give J&K to Pakistan on a plate! The then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the then Defence Minister Jaswant Singh had assured the father of Captain Saurav Kalia who was a retired prominent scientist that they would take up the issue in all international forums but yet to strengthen relations with Pakistan chose not to do so. His father since then is fighting a lonely battle in the Supreme Court to get justice for his son and others who were similarly slaughtered! It is this same Pakistani invader – Musharraf who paid Rs 1 lakh to dreaded Pakistani Al Qaeda terrorist – Iliyas Kashmiri for presenting him a severed head of an Indian soldier as a trophy which he wanted to always keep it with him after playing it like a football with terrorists and his soldiers as was reported widely in prominent Indian newspapers in 1999-2000!
So India should not be taught lessons on humanity by either UN or UK or US or anyone else who all have always collaborated to ensure that India never remains united and strong and instead always favoured disintegration of India to the hilt. This alone explains why India is always criticized by Muslim countries like Malaysia, Turkey among others and groups like Organisation of Islamic countries (OIC) who keep attacking India on human rights of Muslims yet want India to keep all illegal immigrants from other countries especially those who are Muslims in India and not in Pakistan or Bangladesh which UN, US and UK proudly collaborated to create on the basis of religion! Why UN, US and UK keep a conspicuous silence when lakhs of Kashmiri Hindus are forcibly made to become a refugee in their own country by raping women and killing many of them as we saw in the starting of 1990 when VP Singh was PM? Why so much of brouhaha is made when India under the able leadership of PM Narendra Modi decides to give Hindu migrants from Pakistan and Bangladesh citizenship of India as we saw during CAA protests?
This alone explains why my best friend Sageer Khan always said way back in 1993-1995 to me time and again that, “India is the best country for Muslims in the world to live in. Muslims enjoy more freedom than Hindus in India. This alone explains why Jawaharlal Nehru banned Hindus from marrying more than one in 1955 even though Hindus earlier could marry as many as they wanted both Hindu men and Hindu women and even Dr BR Ambedkar wanted polygamy to be retained among Hindus in his Hindu Code Bill 1951 which he had proposed but which Nehru didn’t accept. I have heard that Lord Krishna had more than 16,000 wives and so also Shivaji had many wives and even Lord Ram’s father had 3 wives! Similarly Draupadi as we all know had five husbands! But in Muslims only men can marry more than one and not women! Can any PM in India ever dare to abolish polygamy among Muslims even though it is abolished in many Muslim countries? Triple talaq was banned in Pakistan since 1961 as is the case in many other Muslim countries but in India it is still continuing and will continue till I don’t know when? Muslims are allowed to become President in India like we saw in case of Dr Zakir Hussain, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and so also many Chief Justices like Mohammad Hidayatullah but Hindus in Pakistan are treated as second or rather third grade citizens and not allowed to become even an MP or MLA leave alone Chief Justice or President which they can’t even dream of and are always coerced to change religion! In India Muslims claim foolishly right over Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura which have been Hindu sacred sites since time immemorial and I fail to understand why Centre does not declare them “Hindu sites”? No Muslim should ever worship in any of the disputed sites as Islam clearly prohibits it! Moreover Muslims must respect Hindus rights over these 3 places which are most sacred to them. How will Muslims feel if Hindus start saying that temples should be built in Muslim sacred cities like Mecca and Medina and start claiming ownership of it? Muslims won’t be ready to give even an inch in any of the Arab countries! But see how large hearted Hindus are! Muslims must show large heartedness just like Hindus and give up all wrong, stupid and baseless claims on Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura! Indian Muslims called “Mohajirs” who migrated from India to Pakistan are still discriminated against and are made to suffer endlessly, Same is true of people in Balochistan, PoK and Sindh and many other regions. Mohammad Ali Jinnah who foolishly created Pakistan was a Shia and you see that how terrorists selectively target their shrines and keep killing them repeatedly even now as there are huge differences between Shias and Sunnis! Those who shout slogans in favour of Pakistan should not be booked for sedition in India but should be straightaway sent to Pakistan and we will then see that not a single sloganeer will ever want to go to Pakistan as there is nothing there to be proud of except religious bigotry and encouragement to terror aided and abetted by rogue countries like US, UK and China who never want a united and strong India! I don’t fear ISI. I don’t fear Taliban. I don’t fear Pakistan. I fear only and only those Indians who defend terrorists and illegal immigrants in one form or the other. If Muslims from Pakistan and Bangladesh have to come to India then why were Bangladesh and Pakistan created? India is united since 1947 till now in 1993-94 even though Pakistan keeps vowing to split India into thousand parts with help of terrorists and rogue countries like UK, US and rogue organizations like UN but Pakistan was so disunited that it split so early into Pakistan and Bangladesh in 1971 itself just 24 years not even 25 years after it came into existence. India will even 25 years later stay still united and even 250 years later still united! ”
Yes, Sageer Khan was hundred percent right! Now we see that 2021 has not just commenced but 3 months have also gone which means 50 years after Pakistan split in 1971 yet India is still united despite Pakistan’s shouting brigade with full help from some powerful countries and powerful international organizations! But we cannot afford to be complacent and have to guard ourselves from all international conspiracies who ensured India was most stupidly, most shamelessly and most senselessly split in 1947 on the “most erratic” ground of “religion” which actually was engineered by US, UN and masterminded by UK which alone explains that why they always keep attacking India on human rights issue but hardly say anything when thousands of temples are burnt in Pakistan or Bangladesh or other countries! Why now Muslims from other countries also which includes Pakistan and Bangladesh want to come to India only as “refugees” even when international ratings rate India very low in religious freedom index rankings?
Needless to state, this itself shows that there is more to it than meets the eye and all these ratings are just “fooling other countries and deceiving them for their own vested interests”! India must start its own rankings now and it is good to learn that Centre is already contemplating on it as had appeared even in media just recently! How can our Courts and Judges pretend to overlook all these and still vouch for giving more and more Muslim refugees a place in India to live in as we don’t discriminate on basis of religion?
In this context, it would be pertinent to mention that the Supreme Court on 26 March issued notice on a PIL filed by BJP leader and senior advocate Ashwini Upadhyay seeking immediate steps for deportation of all illegal immigrants and infiltrators, including Bangladeshis and Rohingyas. A Bench of Apex Court comprising of CJI SA Bobde and Justices AS Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian has tagged the plea with a writ petition filed by Mohammed Salimullah in 2017 against deportation of Rohingyas refugees who have been detained in Jammu. It must be mentioned here that the Supreme Court has reserved orders in the said matter.
To put things in perspective, it must be mentioned here that in the instant petition, Ashwini Upadhyaya seeks directions to the Central and State Governments to identify, detain and deport all illegal immigrants, including Bangladeshis and Rohingyas within one year. I am sorry to say but this the Centre and all States should do on their own and there should have ideally been no need for some senior and eminent advocate like Ashwini Upadhyaya to take up the cudgels in this regard which is only wasting time and allowing illegal refugees to escape to some other safe location from which they just can’t be traced! How can this be justified in any manner?
It must also be mentioned here that Ashwini Upadhyaya states in his plea that, “Under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and in exercise of the powers contained therein, the Central Government and State Governments must take concrete steps to detect and deport illegal immigrants.” Why have no steps been taken even after nearly 75 years after independence? Why do we want to keep Pakistanis and Bangladeshis on our soil? If we are really serious on keeping them in our soil then we must recollect that it is not my best friend Sageer Khan but a former Supreme Court Judge – Justice Markandey Katju who had once very famously said that, “Pakistan and Bangladesh are nothing but fake countries. One fake country called Pakistan was created by father Jawaharlal Nehru then daughter Indira Gandhi created another fake country called Bangladesh. I am sure that sooner or later they will both be merged in India.” But till Pakistan and Bangladesh are merged in India which we all who have even little sense can gauge is just not possible, it would definitely be not appropriate to keep them in India as they have their own countries since last many decades! Yes, if they are merged in India then India must accord them Indian citizenship which they will automatically get also if both Pakistan and Bangladesh are merged in India! But this is just like an utopian dream which we don’t see happening anytime soon in the near future!
How can we conveniently ignore what Ashwini points out so convincingly that large-scale illegal immigrants, particularly from Myanmar and Bangaldesh have threatened the demographic structure of bordering districts of India and have seriously impaired the security and national integration? In this context, it refers to the 175th report of the Law Commission of India noting that entry of illegal migrants into India poses a grave threat to its democracy as well as its security, especially in Jammu and Kashmir and the eastern States. In its report, the Law Commission had observed that influx of migrants from Bangladesh has remained unabated and has acquired “frightening proportions”.
We ought to also take into account that Ashwani Upadhyay also states that such large-scale influx of illegal immigrants has led to large tracts of sensitive international borders being occupied by foreigners. Upadhyay also rightly states in his plea that, “This has not only serious implications for our internal security, but also infringes upon right to life and liberty of Indian Citizens guaranteed under the Article 21.” It further highlights the sorry plight of bordering districts of Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura that have recorded growth of population higher than the national average.
Adding more to it, the plea of Ashwani while quoting from a report submitted by the then Governor of Assam to the Union Government in 1998 states that, “The unabated influx of illegal migrants… threatens to reduce the Assamese people to a minority in their own State, as happened in Tripura and Sikkim… There is a tendency to view illegal migration into Assam as a regional matter affecting only the people of Assam. It’s more dangerous dimensions of greatly undermining our national security, is ignored.”
Bluntly put: Why was Pakistan created in 1947 if Pakistanis especially Muslims have to come to India as it was created solely on ground of religion as their founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah had wanted? Why was Bangladesh created in 1971 if Bangladeshis have to migrate to India? This only vindicates what Justice Markjandey Katju says that Pakistan and Bangladesh are nothing but “fake countries” and sooner or later they will merge again in India. If UN is really serious about the fate of illegal migrants then it must urge Pakistan and Bangladesh to again merge in India just like they were before 15 August 1947 so that all Bangladeshis and Pakistanis can live peacefully in united and strong India! But this the UN never wants! It only wants to always corner India and ensure that India is mocked at as it is dominated by none other than US and UK which ensured India’s partition in 1947! How can all this be ignored?
Of course, senior advocate Ashwini rightly sought a direction to the Government authorities to amend the respective laws to make illegal migration and infiltration a cognizable, non-bailable and non-compoundable offence. It is stated that such people cannot be granted protection under provisions of Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951 and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees 1967, since India is not a signatory of either of them. His point is absolutely valid!
To be sure, Ashwani’s plea goes on to point out that many Rohingyas indulge in anti-national activities such as mobilization of funds through hawala channels, procuring fake Indian identity documents for other Rohingyas and human trafficking. It is contended that many of them have even managed to acquire fake/fraudulently obtained Indian identity documents i.e. PAN card and voter cards. Thus, it is urged that stern action be taken against such travel agents, government employees and other such people, who directly/indirectly provide PAN Card, Aadhaar Cards, Ration Cards, Passport and Voter Cards to illegal immigrants and infiltrators. What wrong has Ashwani stated? Centre should have itself done the same and even now it is not too late!
More to the point: Why is it that even as PM Narendra Modi is touring Bangladesh do we read in newspapers especially in Hindi newspapers that Hindus are being attacked in Bangladesh and that too without any provocation? Why should India always be expected to show restraint? Will US or UK ever keep quiet if their citizens are similarly tortured, humiliated and murdered? India must lodge strong protest with Bangladesh on harassment, torturing and killing of Hindus not just in Pakistan but also in Bangladesh!
Let me say it upfront: Ashwani Upadhyay has to be not just applauded, admired and appreciated for his tremendous efforts to ensure that India does not become a hub of refugees from all across the world who keep berating India time and again and yet expect India to keep accommodating more and more Muslim migrants from all across but also supported unequivocally in equal measure! The world dominated by UN which again is dominated by US and UK must be told unequivocally that India will not take its security issue lying down any longer! It is US and UK that ensured India is not made a permanent member of UN but happily granted China that status even though China now has itself become a global menace! So US and UK and UN dominated by US and UK have no right to lecture India on human rights issue! Why those who are accused of looting in India worth thousands of crores are always given refuge in UK and US? Why anti-India slogans are raised in both these countries or countries they support like Canada notorious for becoming hub of Khalistani supporters? Why Mahatma Gandhi’s statue is vandalised mostly in US and countries it support?
To conclude, India has always tried to maintain good relations despite all this with US, UK, UN and other countries supporting them. But it should not be at the cost of our territorial integrity. Supreme Court must stay itself away from interfering as it is the job of the Centre to ensure the unity and integrity of India. The Jammu and Kashmir government has very rightly objected to the Supreme Court allowing the intervention of UN human rights rapporteur in the Rohingya case insisting that courts can only implement domestic law and cannot force the government to accept international conventions that have not been signed for a reason. After hearing this argument, a three-Judge Bench led by CJI SA Bobde rightly refused to hear for now the rapporteur represented in court by senior advocate CU Singh. It also did not give a ruling on the issue. Senior and eminent advocate and former Solicitor General of India – Harish Salve while appearing for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir rightly, remarkably and rationally said that, “Municipal courts only apply domestic law. To get the government to enforce through courts treaties it has not signed for good reasons is elbowing the government.”
Unquestionably, it is high time and Supreme Court must definitely and wisely stay out of all such decisions which directly affect the security of India and which are purely in the domain of Centre to act as it has the mandate of people in this regard! Supreme Court must concentrate more in setting its own house in order like UP having least High Court Benches in India just one created way back in 1948 and that too so near to Allahabad at Lucknow despite topping the states list of maximum pending cases and here too more than half of pending cases are from West UP due to which people from West UP numbering more than 9 crore of more than 20 districts have to travel whole one day all the way to reach Allahabad and so also people of Bundelkhand, Purvanchal and other remote places!
Similarly, Supreme Court must concentrate on ensuring that all vacant posts of judiciary are filled in not just lower courts but also in the High Courts and also in the Supreme Court! It should also focus on providing better infrastructure to lower courts and there are so many key issues which directly affect the reputation of Indian judiciary which are lying unseen, unattended and unredressed! Why another lawless state Bihar has not even a single High Court Bench?
More to the point: Why peaceful states like Karnataka have multiple Benches and for just 4 and 8 districts Benches were created in 2008 in Gulbarga and Dharwad respectively which were made permanent also later? Why Maharashtra which tops the “Justice Index List” has multiple High Court Benches at Nagpur, Aurangabad and Panaji? When Maharashtra inspite of topping can have so many High Court Benches then why not UP and Bihar who are recording so many crime incidents have more Benches similarly?
It was not for nothing that Justice Jaswant Singh Commission headed by former Supreme Court Judge recommended 3 High Court Benches for undivided UP in mid 1970s but not one was created even though on its recommendations High Court Benches were created for other places like Aurangabad in Maharashtra, Madurai in Tamil Nadu and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal! Why Supreme Court never says anything on this which directly concerns judiciary and leaves everything on Centre as we saw in time of former CJI Ranjan Gogoi who appreciated the dire need for a High Court Bench in West UP but said that it was for Centre to take a decision on it even though it directly affects more than 9 crore people living here! The 230th report of Law Commission of India does not apply to just Assam or Maharashtra or Karnataka alone which already have multiple Benches three or more than three just like Madhya Pradesh has two Benches even though it can but also to other big states like UP, Rajasthan and Bihar but where most unfortunately not a single extra Bench has been created after its landmark recommendations were announced!
Why then it prefers to interfere on refugees issues and all such issues which directly affects our national security and our national integrity? Let’s hope better wisdom will prevail on Supreme Court as we see in current case also after senior lawyer Harish Salve argued brilliantly!
Sanjeev Sirohi