Stateless and Statusless- Continued Struggles of Refugees from Pakistan Seeking Shelter in India

• In Event: Poster Session

Abstract

A study about refugees from Pakistan seeking shelter in India. For many decades, there has been a continuous flow of refugees from Pakistan due to religious and economic persecution. However, in India, they face additional legal and economic problems due to corruption and political indifference. Most of them belong to lower castes, come from extreme poverty, and live in politically unviable spaces. Many of them do not even have the official refugee status as India’s stated policy is that it does not want to interfere in Pakistan’s internal matters. As a result, these refugees do not get any state assistance including below poverty line (BPL) certificates. The United Nations is reluctant to interfere as both India and Pakistan treat it as a bilateral issue. The study is based the data collected in summer 2013, using focus groups and in-depth interviews, in Jodhpur (Rajasthan, India).

Author

• Divya Sharma, Western Connecticut State University