The Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) of the Uttar Pradesh state police conducted an operation Monday resulting in the arrest of 74 Rohingya Muslims who had allegedly entered India illegally from Myanmar and Bangladesh and settled in various districts in the western parts of the state.

The ATS operation covered six local districts. Mathura recorded the highest number of arrests, followed by Aligarh, Hapur, Ghaziabad, Meerut, and Saharanpur. Among the Rohingya detained, 55 were men, 14 were women, and five were minors. Legal action has been initiated against them in their respective districts through the registration of FIRs (First Information Reports).

Prior to the operation, the ATS had been gathering information about Rohingyas living in different districts of Uttar Pradesh after crossing the Indian border unlawfully. However, activists have raised concerns about the arrests, labeling them as an arbitrary crackdown on people fleeing violence in Myanmar.  They were engaged in manual labor, including rubbish collection, as a means of survival in India.

India’s stance on refugee protection poses challenges to addressing such issues, as the country is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention.  India therefore lacks specific laws to protect refugees. Presently, an estimated 18,000 Rohingya are residing in India.