Govt has proof of links between Pakistan-based terror groups and Rohingyas

The Centre has catalogued evidence of links of Pakistan-based terror groups with Rohingyas to claim that the refugees' continuous presence in India could pose "serious national security ramifications".

A confidential report lists incidents to establish links between stateless Rohingya and terrorist organisations in Pakistan and others global groups like Al-Qaida.

Sources also claim that Pakistan's deep state had an interest in keeping Rakhine province on the boil to foil Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Act East Policy.

The anchor of this policy is Rs 29-billion Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project connecting Rakhine's capital Sittwe to India's landlocked Northeast region. Many here believe that Sittwe has similar significance for India to reach Bay of Bengal, as Gwadar in Baluchistan in Pakistan has for China to connect its mainland to Arabian Sea.

The dossier mentions an IED blast that took place on May 4, 2017 at Buthidaung Townshi in Rakhine, in the westernmost part of Myanmar. Investigations revealed that two out of the four killed while assembling the device were Pakistani nationals and the remaining two were local Rohingyas from the same township. The Pakistani nationals of Rohingya origin were identified as Abdul Rahim and Anarthullah, who had returned to Rakhine after spending 20 years away in Af-Pak region. "The incident shows how deep Pakistan-based terror groups have taken roots in the region," intelligence sources here told dna.

There is also mention of a group Aqamul Mujahideen (AMM), blamed for engineering attacks on Myanmar border outposts last year. The group is said to have links with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Some elements of the group have also been seen having developed ties with the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) cell in Jammu and Kashmir. One Chotta Burmi of Rohingya ethnic group was killed in an encounter Kashmir in 2015.

Intelligence agencies believe that the AMM is actually a breakaway group from the Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami Arakan (HUJI-A), headed by Abdus Qadoos Burmi, a Pakistani national of Rohingya origin. The agencies, who have been tracking him for years are understood to have reported his stay at the LeT headquarters in Muridke near Lahore. Information shared by the intelligence agencies in Bangladesh and Myanmar also suggests that AMM leader Hafiz Tohar aka Abu Aman Jununi was recruited by Burmi from Kyuak Pyin Siek village of Maungdaw and was later trained in Pakistan. Both of them have recruited new cadres among the Rohingya youth in Rakhine and refugee camps in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazaar. They believe that the AMM cadre was trained along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.

The agencies have also noted frequent movements of Maulana Ustad Wazeer aka Noor Kabir and Fareed Faizullah, both Pakistani nationals of Rohingya origin, in Bangladesh's Chittagong area and Thailand's Mae Sot, Tak province, where they are engaged in indoctrination and training of recruits. Last year in May, Bangladesh authorities had arrested Omar Faruk aka RSO Faruk of the LeT-backed Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO) from Chittagong for attacking the Bangladesh ANSAR camp at Teknaf, looting weapons and killing the troop commander. The ANSAR is a paramilitary auxiliary force at par with India's CRPF responsible for the preservation of internal security and law enforcement.

The Central government dossier further mentions that the LeT had organised the Difa-e-Musalman-e-Arakan conference in Pakistan in July 2012 to highlight the Rohingya cause. Subsequently, LeT had sent its senior operatives Shahid Mehmood and Nadeem Awan to Bangladesh to recruit Rohingyas and train them on the borders with Myanmar.

It makes a case that Rohingyas were vulnerable to fall in the trap of Sunni radical elements, thereby having direct repercussions on India's maritime security in the Bay of Bengal area and internal security in the Northeast region. "Escalation of militant activities in this region shall pose a direct threat to international shipping lanes of communication passing through the Malacca Straits," the Central government dossier said. It also reminds that the groups like Afghan Taliban, Al Qaida's Yemen Branch, LeT and JeM and other groups have openly called for attacks on Myanmar authorities in support of the Rohingyas.

The Myanmar government does not recognise Rohingyas as inhabitants of the country and have declared a large section of them as non-citizens. India houses around 40,000 Rohingyas who have arrived in the country through porous India-Myanmar and India-Bangladesh borders in separate batches since 2012-13. Even though India has no refugee policy, the government has remained lenient with refugees fleeing their countries in the times of crisis. More than 1,20,000 Tibetan refugees live in India. There is a Tibetan government in-exile operated from McLeodganj in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. Karnataka also allotted land for Tibetan refugees. Around 60,000 Afghan refugees came to India after Russian invasion. Govt allowed UNHCR to continue its programme. There are about 10,000 Sri Lankan refugees living in India. There are 107 camps in Tamil Nadu and one in Odisha for Sri Lanka refugees.

Nearly 7,000 Rohingya living in 23 settlements across Jammu. They have moved the Supreme Court, challenging that they were involved in any terrorist act. "All 7,000 Rohingya have nothing to do with terrorism," the community, represented by counsel Colin Gonsalves, said. "Not a single one of them has ever engaged in any terrorist activity," he said. "The local police have for over a year conducted interrogation of all the Rohingya and have taken full details of each family. The local police have inspected the settlements several times every month. All the Rohingya cooperate with the police and give them all the required information," he said.