The story so far: Shadiya, a 22-year-old, has spent three years detained in a ‘holding’ centre for Rohingya refugees; separated from her child, she lives in a closed space without sunlight, described as big enough to barely spread one’s mattress. She was arrested in 2020 for living in India ‘illegally’, despite holding a valid refugee card that signifies her status as a persecuted minority in her home country, Myanmar.
A writ petition in the Supreme Court on October 10 challenged the hostile and dehumanising conditions many Rohingya refugees like Shadiya face today, alleging that India’s arrest and detention of the “world’s most persecuted ethnic minority” population is illegal and unconstitutional. “Hundreds of Rohingya refugees including pregnant women and minors, have been detained unlawfully and indefinitely... They endure severe violations and dehumanising conditions within these detention facilities,” the petition stated. The Court has asked the Union Government to file a response within four weeks.
