COLOMBO :
The Sri Lankans living in India as refugees should be offered a clear and dignified choice, either acquire Indian citizenship or retain Sri Lankan citizenship and continue residing in refugee camps until conditions allow them to return home safely.
Many of these individuals have been living in camps for decades, since the 1980s. Beyond the elders, the younger generation—those born in India or brought here as children, educated in Indian schools and universities, married in India, and fully integrated into the socio-economic fabric of the country—should be granted Indian citizenship if they so desire.
This is a matter of social justice and humane consideration for a long-standing, unresolved issue.
At the same time, those who choose not to acquire Indian citizenship must retain the freedom to make that choice without coercion.
In addition to the camp-residing population, there exists a comparable group of Sri Lankans who migrated to India during the 1970s, 1980s, and later, now residing in cities such as Chennai, Trichy, Coimbatore, and Madurai. This group is highly assimilated into Indian society, actively participating in its economic, social, and cultural life. Some hold unofficial or undocumented status, yet they are continuously monitored by authorities without a clear policy framework, often subjected to bureaucratic harassment and corruption.
These individuals face restrictions on obtaining Indian passports and are cautious about holding Sri Lankan passports, effectively preventing them from traveling abroad. They continue to live under uncertainty and hardship.
What is urgently required is a clear, straightforward mechanism for regularizing their citizenship status. I am therefore encouraged that this matter is under discussion. It is time to deliver a permanent, humane, and socially just solution—once and for all.
