| Greg Constantine |
BANGLADESH/ PAKISTAN
Finally, citizens
While the Rajasthan government is milking the recent Jaipur bombings to target 'illegal Bangladeshi migrants', the issue of citizenship has re-emerged as a hot topic in Bangladesh, as well. In late May, the Bangladeshi High Court finally ruled to grant citizenship to the children of Bihari (Urdu-speaking) refugees in Bangladesh. The ruling comes in response to a petition presented by a group of Bihari refugees under the age of 37. "The children who were minors in 1971 or born after the independence of Bangladesh are citizens of Bangladesh," the ruling stated firmly.
Approximately 300,000 'stranded Pakistanis' have languished for decades in 66 refugee camps scattered throughout Bangladesh, with poor sanitation, no healthcare and, until recently, no education. These included families from Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Orissa, Nagaland, Manipur and Tripura, all of whom went to East Pakistan after Partition. The accusation against the community is of being pro-West Pakistan during the 1971 War of Liberation.