Punjab and Haryana HC transfers Rohingya refugee boy from Amritsar to Nuh camp

Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, January 16

A mother will be united with her son in a refugee camp at Nuh. Acting on a habeas petition filed by the mother, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the son’s transfer from Amritsar to Chandeni Rohingya Refugee Camp in Nuh tehsil of Mewat district “to enable him to stay with his mother”.

The direction by Justice Gurvinder Singh Gill came on a petition against the Union of India and other respondents by the mother through counsel Bhanu Pratap Singh for directions to produce her son and to set him at liberty.

During the course of arguments, her counsel, however, confined his submissions to the transfer of petitioner’s son from Amritsar, where he was presently detained in a center. Bhanu Partap Singh told the court that the petitioner’s son had allegedly entered India without proper documents and passport. He was stated to have been later registered as a refugee. His main contention was that both the petitioner and her son be kept at one place till they were deported, if they were to be detained.

Appearing before the Bench, Additional Solicitor-General of India Satya Pal Jain said the Union Ministry of Home Affairs or Union of India had no objection in case the petitioner’s son was transferred from Amritsar to Chandeni Rohingya Refugee Camp provided the States of Punjab and Haryana did not have any objections.

Responding to a court query, the law officers representing Punjab and Haryana stated both the States possibly could not have any objection to transfer the petitioner’s son to enable him to stay with his mother.

“In view of the position, the present petition is accepted. Additional Director-General of Police (Prisons), Punjab, is directed to do the needful for arranging for the conveyance and for ensuring that the petitioner’s son is taken from Amritsar, where he is presently detained in a detention centre and consigned to Chandeni Rohingya Refugee Camp, Nuh tehsil,” Justice Gill concluded.