"India is not a 'Dharamshala' where refugees can come and settle", Asserts Supreme Court ;Rejects Sri Lankan Tamil's Plea to Settle
New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): The Supreme Court, while dismissing the petition of a Sri Lankan Tamil citizen, has made an important comment that India is not a "Dharamshala" where refugees from all over the world come and settle. Justice Dipankar Dutta said during the hearing that when our own population is more than 140 crores, can India welcome refugees from all over the world? This is not a Dharamshala where we welcome people from all over the world. Along with this, the court refused to intervene in the matter of detention of a Sri Lankan Tamil man. The man had filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against his detention.
A bench of Justice Dipankar Dutta and Justice K. Vinod Chandran was hearing the case. The Sri Lankan Tamil citizen had challenged the Madras High Court's decision, which directed him to leave the country immediately after completing his 7-year sentence. The man was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in a UAPA case, which he had completed. However, even after completing the sentence, the Sri Lankan Tamil had expressed his desire to stay in India.
The petitioner's lawyer argued in the court that his client had come to India on a valid visa and if he is sent back to his country, his life may be in danger. The lawyer also said that the petitioner has been kept in custody for about three years without any deportation process.
On this, Justice Dipankar Dutta made a sharp comment and asked, "What right do you have to settle here?" The petitioner's lawyer replied that his client is a refugee and his wife and children are already living in India. On this, Justice Dutta clarified that ordering the petitioner to leave India is in no way a violation of Article 21 (right to life and personal liberty). Justice Dutta said that under Article 19, only the citizens of India have the right to settle in India. No outsider has the right to come and settle here. When the lawyer again expressed the fear of danger to his life, Justice Dutta said that he could go to any other country.