India: Information on the fate of Sikhs who are returned to India after being denied refugee status and asylum abroad and who are suspected by the Punjab authorities of having provided food and shelter to Sikh militants
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 August 1996 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | IND24769.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, India: Information on the fate of Sikhs who are returned to India after being denied refugee status and asylum abroad and who are suspected by the Punjab authorities of having provided food and shelter to Sikh militants, 1 August 1996, IND24769.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad068.html [accessed 19 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The attached 21 August 1996 e-mail from the Asylum Section of the Refugee Branch at Citizenship and Immigration Canada states that the Canadian Mission in New Delhi is "not aware of anything adverse happening to Sikhs who have been recently returned to India."
A professor of political science at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri, who specializes in Sikh militancy and was in India during the June 1996 elections to the Indian parliament, stated during a 16 August 1996 telephone interview that although political violence has gone down substantially over the last two years and the Punjab authorities have shown signs of appeasement, the "repression apparatus" is still in place and there are still "uncontrolled elements" in the police force. It is unlikely, in his opinion, that such elements will be completely under control as long the Congress Party remains in power in the Punjab state. However, the situation might change after the February 1997 state elections in Punjab. He believes that Sikhs who are returned to India after being denied refugee status or asylum abroad and who are suspected by the Punjab authorities of having provided food and shelter to Sikh militants in the past, namely those who are listed in the police files, would still be at risk of being interrogated by the police and of being tortured in the process.
Information on whether members of the Punjab police force were prosecuted for mistreatment of returned Sikhs to India could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.
The attached 3 January 1996 report from The Guardian provides information on on the return of Sikhs to India and cites the director of a South Asian human rights group and Indian lawyers.
Additional information on the above-mentioned topic could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), Refugee Branch, Asylum Section, Ottawa. 21 August 1996. E-Mail sent to the DIRB.
Professor of political science at University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. 16 August 1996. Telephone interview.
Attachments
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), Refugee Branch, Asylum Section, Ottawa. 21 August 1996. E-Mail sent to the DIRB.
The Guardian [Manchester]. 3 January 1996. Suzanne Goldenberg. "Howard Told of 'Lethal Results' From Visa Ban." (NEXIS)
Additional Sources Consulted
Amnesty International. Amnesty International Report. Yearly.
Amnesty International periodical reports and press releases.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1995. 1996.
Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Reports. Daily.
Human Rights Watch (HRW). 1995. Human Rights Watch World Report for 1996. New York: Human Rights Watch.
Human Rights Watch periodical reports.
Material from the Indexed Media Review (IMR) or country files containing articles and reports from diverse sources (primarily dailies and periodicals) from the Weekly Media Review.
Two additional oral sources consulted did not provide information on the requested subject.
