India is not a dharamshala to accommodate refugees from all over the world, the Supreme Court remarked on Monday while declining to entertain a plea filed by a Sri Lankan national challenging his deportation after serving a jail term.
A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and K Vinod Chandran said, “Is India to host refugees from all over the world? We are already struggling with a population of 140 crore. This is not a dharmshala where we can entertain foreign nationals from everywhere.”
The apex court was hearing a plea challenging a Madras High Court order directing a Sri Lankan Tamil national to leave India immediately after completing a seven-year prison sentence under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA).
He sought protection from deportation, citing a threat to his life if he were to return to his home country.
“Go to some other country,” said the bench.
The petitioner’s counsel contended that he had been under detention for nearly three years post his sentence, without any initiation of deportation proceedings.
The petitioner, who entered India on a visa, faced a serious threat to his life if sent back to Sri Lanka, the court was informed. The counsel further apprised the bench that the petitioner was a refugee and that his wife and children were already settled in India. (ANI)
