Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Friday asserted the government’s next move will be to deport Rohingyas, who are currently staying illegally in the country. Raising questions about how Rohingyas settled in Jammu, he also said that the Citizenship Amendment act (CAA) was implemented in Jammu and Kashmir the day it was passed by Parliament, reports India Today.

Addressing the officers of the Jammu and Kashmir government at a three-day training programme in Jammu, Union Minister Jitendra Singh demanded a probe into how the Rohingyas reached and settled down in the northern-most belt of Jammu after passing through several states from West Bengal.

Demanding a probe into the circumstances that led the Rohingyas to travel such a long distance, Singh said that it is for researchers and analysts to know how Rohingya Muslims came so far from Bengal, travelling through several states.

Jitendra Singh also wondered whether there was any design or political motive behind the settling down of Rohingya Muslims in Jammu. Who paid for their tickets to Jammu from Bengal, Singh asked.

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“The CAA has been implemented in Jammu and Kashmir the day it was passed by Parliament. There are no ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’, by the implementation of the CAA in Jammu and Kashmir, what would happen here is that the next move would be in relation to (the deportation) of Rohingyas,” Singh said.

The minister also pointed out that Jammu had a sizable population of Rohingyas. “What will be the plan of their (Rohingyas’) deportation, the Centre is concerned about it. Lists would be prepared. Wherever needed, biometric identity cards will be given, because the CAA does not give leverage to Rohingyas,” Singh said.

Read: Rohingyas are a threat to national and regional security, says Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina

Minister Singh added that Rohingyas neither belong to the six religious minorities nor to any of the three neighbouring countries – Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who will be given citizenship under the new law.

“Rohingyas came to the country from Myanmar and hence, they would have to go back,” he added.

Reportedly, there are more than 13,700 foreigners, including Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshi nationals, who are currently settled in Jammu and Samba districts. According to the government, the population of Rohingyas has increased by over 6,000 between 2008 and 2016.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP), the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and other social organisations have been demanding the deportation of the Rohingyas from a very long time now.

Read: ISI-backed JeM cadres training Rohingya Muslims to carry out terror attacks in India, reveals BSF

Rohingya Muslims are also considered to be national security for India. According to the Border Security Force(BSF) report, Pakistan based terror outfit Jaish-e-Muhammad(JeM) was imparting training to Rohingya Muslims to carry out attacks in different parts of India.

The report had suggested that a top JeM commander, Saber Ahmed, who is currently in Pakistan, has targetted disgruntled Rohingya Muslims in Bangladesh’s Cox Bazar and indoctrinating them to carry out terror attacks in India.

In 2017, the central government had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that they were around 40,000 Rohingya refugees living in India as “a security threat” and said they must be deported to Myanmar.