Thousands of Afghan Refugees and their families including mine are living in uncertainty in India for many years without proper attention from UNHCR. They are kept here for years for their Refugee Status Determination (RSD).

As per the UNHCR Manual, an application for RSD takes 6-12 months allowing UNHCR to determine whether the application for Refugee status is either accepted or rejected. The 6-12 months timeframe is stated in an official letter of UNHCR given to the applicants after their interview

There are thousands of families and individuals whom left Afghanistan due to various reasons and came to India for protection, they are left alone without any help for years, I know families those waited for 7, 5 and 4 years for their RSD determination. 

To be more precise I would like to share my case as an example that I have been waiting for my RSD determination for 4 years and UNHCR is yet to determine me and my family as refugees. At the end of my RSD Interview in 2018 I was given a letter that my case will either be accepted or rejected by UNHCR in 6-12 months, and here I am still waiting for the result.

UNHCR Delhi office is not responsive, they have never answered our query during the past four years. I have even tried to contact UNHCR HQ in Geneva, I have got no reply from them as well.

Hence I am now filing this petition to raise our voice and inform the world about our status in order to seek their help and support which will positively impact and change the lives of many families currently living in uncertainty.