High Voltage Hearing In Rohingya Matter: Who Said What [Read Order]

In pursuance of its direction of April 9, ASG Tushar Mehta on Friday submitted before the Supreme Court the status report on the living conditions in the Rohingya settlements in Delhi and Haryana.“The report relates to the camps in Kalindi Kunj in Delhi and in Village Firozepur Namak and Village Shahpur Nangli in Nuh, Mewat in Haryana...the members of the Committee include the Deputy Commissioner, Ministry of Health, the Deputy Director, Ministry of Health and the Undersecretary, Ministry of Home Affairs...the sites of the camps were visited and the local inhabitants were interviewed...the report covers such aspects as demography, conditions of habitation, availability of water, education, health facilities and sanitation...in Mewat, there are over 300 Rohingya families with 1,443 members...the members of the Rohingya community have equal access to health centres as the indian citizens in the adjoining ‘Basti’...Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) workers visit the camps once a week to provide basic health care...there is an adequate supply of drugs...no instances of maternal or child death on account of lack of medical facilities...enrolment of children at anganwadi centres...family planning services...immunisation and pulse polio camps once a month...potable water is made available by pipe in Village Firozepur and by tanker in Village Shahpur...each site has its own toilet and there is no open defecation...no accumulation of garbage...regular power supply...some huts even had a refrigerator...at the primary school in Village Firozepur, out of 500 children, 41 are Rohingyas...they are also entitled to the Mid Day Meal Scheme, free books and bags at par with their Indian counterparts...in fact, the living conditions in the Rohingya camps are slightly better than in the adjacent ‘Basti’...”, he quoted from the report, drawing the attention of the bench to the photographs of the camp.“The report does not paint some rosy picture...the school register and the monthly registration at immunisation camps evidence the findings...”, advanced the ASG.“How many toilets are there?”, asked the Chief Justice.An advocate for one of the petitioners interjected, “there are no proper toilets in Mewat...the inhabitants have dug holes which they cover with mud...plastic sheets are used as cover...in Kalindi Kunj, there are 6 Kachcha toilets...”“The report avers that each and every hut visited has a toilet and there is no defecation in the open...”, countered the ASG, adding to the advocate, “the situation is the same in several other parts of the country...atleast we do not discriminate between the refugees and the Indian slum dwellers”“The problem lies in the fine print...these are not proper toilets, only minimal structures to protect one’s dignity...water may be supplied by tankers, but the tanker may visit only once a week...the water from the hand pump may not be potable...the argument that our citizens are living in abject poverty cannot be advanced to justify the condition of the Rohingyas...”, noted Justice Chandrachud.“The total population is 1,443 and the capacity of the water tanker is 14,000 litres...”, the ASG sought to submit, with the said advocate contending that the water supply is not adequate.“I was also shaken by the initial contentions that children are dying...but now they are alleging that the water supply is not sufficient...Your Lordships, please take a holistic view in terms of the population across the country...please lift the veil”, commented Mr. Mehta.“The camp in Kalindi Kunj was burnt down...a gentleman had posted on his Facebook page that he along with his associates had carried out the act and that they would do it again...I had complained to the concerned police station but no FIR has been registered so far...”, intervened Advocate Prashant Bhushan.“Ask him to file an affidavit...we cannot proceed on the basis of posts in social media”, argued the ASG.“Access to public health care facilities requires Aadhaar...children have not been formally registered in schools for the want of Aadhaar...at least for the time being Your Lordships may direct there shall not be a denial of access to government schools and healthcare for the lack of Aadhaar...so far as water, electricity and sanitation are concerned, Your Lordships may appoint a court commissioner to inspect the status...”, continued Mr. Bhushan.“A refugee card or some other identity card must be issued to these people so that they are not deprived of basic amenities for the want of identification”, he pressed.In his turn, Senior Counsel Rajiv Dhawan submitted, “the positive aspect of the report is the statement of the fact of acceptance of the commitment to the Rohingya community at an equal level as the Indian citizens...”“...But in so far as it has been stated that several parts of the country are worse off than the Rohingya settlements, shame on the government of India!”, he exclaimed.“I have also noted averments in the reports that the quality...

High Voltage Hearing In Rohingya Matter: Who Said What [Read Order]

Mehal Jain

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