The decision comes amid longstanding difficulties surrounding the voluntary return of Sri Lankan refugees from India. In May last year, a 75-year-old Sri Lankan Tamil refugee was arrested by immigration authorities at Palaly airport in Jaffna after returning from India. The incident raised concerns over the legal difficulties that could face refugees returning to Sri Lanka after decades in India. Nearly 18,000 Sri Lankan refugees returned voluntarily with its assistance between 2002 and February 2022. About 89,000 Sri Lankan Tamils were living in and outside refugee camps in the state as of early 2026, according to Sri Lankan government estimates – and around 40 per cent of them were born in India.