A little over a month after a high-powered panel on demographic changes visited Jammu, Rohingya families on Wednesday started dismantling their shanties at Burma Market in the Kiryani Talab area as the civil administration served notices to local land owners.
Burma Market, which includes a local madrassa, has served as a primary settlement for Rohingya refugees in the region for over two decades.
“We have served notices to various landowners informing them that since their land is designated for agricultural use, they cannot sub-let it for residential purposes,” said an official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The administrative action has triggered widespread distress among residents facing sudden displacement. Where are we supposed to go now? “We need at least five to six months to relocate. How can we pack up immediately, and where do we move?” he asked, pointing out that many residents hold UNHCR refugee cards. “We are not here to settle permanently; we have homes and land back in Myanmar. Until the situation normalises there, we should be allowed to stay on humanitarian grounds. The Union Territory administration formally recognise UNHCR refugee status cards for residents in Jammu. Most Rohingya refugees in the region earn a living doing petty jobs, working as scrap collectors, daily wagers, or domestic help. Despite their continued detention, the central government has made no diplomatic headway with Myanmar authorities, who have yet to accept their return. The administrative action forms part of a wider push against illegal immigration in the Union Territory.
District collector, Jammu, issued the notices under Section 133-A of the Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act, 1996 regarding unauthorized use/conversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes. Mohammad Asif, 45, said, “My family members were killed back home, and we fled here to escape persecution. Farid Alam, 58, who has lived at the settlement for a decade, said, “The landlord came and told us an FIR has been registered against him, so we have to clear out. but their population is estimated to be around 1,500 to 2,000 Although the officials said they don’t have exact figures of Rohingyas living in the Kiryani Talab settlement. Dil Mohammad, 54, a resident since 2010, said: “We were living peacefully, but now the landlord has told us to leave. Tenants pay monthly rents of ₹ 600 to ₹ 1,200 depending on the size of their shanty, he said. Around 275 Rohingyas, who were found without UNHCR cards, were shifted to Hiranagar holding centre in March 2021 following a mass verification drive at MA Stadium. Mohammad Yasir, another resident, said that 275 Rohingyas have been held at the Hiranagar sub-jail in Kathua district since a verification drive was launched at MA Stadium in March 2021. The facility was notified as a holding centre on March 5, 2021, to lodge illegal immigrants under Section 2(b) of the Citizenship Act. On August 3, authorities detained 21 undocumented Bangladeshi nationals from Sylhet district in Banihal while they were en route to the Kashmir Valley. On April 6, 2022, the J&K and Ladakh high court ordered the home secretary to identify all illegal immigrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh within six weeks. Official data estimates 13,700 illegal immigrants reside across J&K. In October 2023, Kishtwar police booked a Rohingya woman, Anwara Begum, alongside a facilitator and a revenue official for fraudulently obtaining a domicile certificate. A similar crackdown in March 2017 saw fake voter IDs, ration cards, and state subject certificates recovered from Rohingya shelters in Jammu.
