Supreme Court to hear petition of Bangladeshi minorities

New Delhi: A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court will take up for hearing on April 19 a petition for protection of the rights of displaced people from minority communities in Bangladesh, who were compelled to take shelter in India.

A three-judge Bench of Chief Justice J.S. Khehar and Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and Sanjay Kishan Kaul on Friday referred the matter for adjudication by a Constitution Bench, which is likely to hold its sittings during the summer vacation.

The PIL deals with those who came to India, particularly in Assam, West Bengal and Meghalaya. It was filed in 2012 by NGO Swajan for a direction that the displaced people be granted refugee status.

The petitioner said the problems of displaced people have been recognised by Parliament and also by the Central government.

“There are four lakh people whose cases are pending before various foreigners tribunals in Assam. Among them, there are also cases of the victimised displaced people belonging to minority communities of Bangladesh who have been forced to take shelter in Assam,” the petition said.

“They are also being clubbed along with illegal migrants and meted out similar harsh treatment,” it said.

“The displaced people deserve protection in our country and the status of refugees under the international conventions, namely the Refugee Convention, 1951, and the International Convention for Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, 2006.