Detained Rohingya woman dies of post-Covid complications in J-K's Kathua

A 62-year-old woman, who was among 220 Rohingya Muslims lodged at a holding centre after being found living illegally here, died of post-COVID-19 complications at a hospital in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district on Monday, officials said.

Noor Aisha, wife of Nazir Hussain, was among 53 internees who tested positive for the deadly infection during a special screening camp on May 25.

The officials said the woman was suffering from co-morbidities, including heart ailment, and she was shifted to the Government Medical College (GMC) hospital in Kathua from the holding centre on May 31 after her condition deteriorated.

Her COVID-19 test returned negative during the treatment, they said, adding that she suffered a massive heart attack which resulted in her death.

The body was shifted to the mortuary and is likely to be handed over to her community members on Tuesday, the officials said.

The Rohingyas are a Bengali-dialect speaking Muslim minority in Myanmar. Following persecution in their country, many of them entered India illegally through Bangladesh and took shelter in Jammu and other parts of the country.

According to government data, over 13,700 foreigners, including Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshi nationals, are settled in Jammu and Samba districts of Jammu and Kashmir, where their population has increased by over 6,000 between 2008 and 2016.

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