...... REVIEW OF LAWS, IMPLEMENTATION OF TREATIES AND OTHER.......... 55 for an eventual ratification. The Commission therefore, took up the matter with the Ministry of Home Affairs in October 2003 and again in January 2004. However, it is yet to receive a response. The Commission urges all the concerned Ministries to take expeditious action in this regard. 4) Convention and Protocol on the Status of Refugees 5.21 The Commission’s views on the need for a comprehensive national legislation to deal with refugee situations facing the country have been recounted in detail in the previous reports. The Commission continued to pursue this matter during the year under review. 5.22 The Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India sought the Commission’s views and comments on the Model National Law on Refugees which was prepared by Justice Shri P.N. Bhagwati in his capacity as Chairman of the ‘Eminent Persons Group’ set up by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The Commission considered this issue in consultation with experts in the field and thereafter decided to set up an Expert Committee on Refugees with the following composition: 1. Shri Fali S.Nariman, Member of Parliament 2. Shri Arun Kumar Jain, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs. 3. Dr. Narinder Singh, Joint Secretary, Legal and Treaties Division, Ministry of External Affairs 4. Dr. O.P. Shukla, Joint Secretary and Legal Adviser, Department of Legal Affairs, Ministry of Law and Justice, 5. Shri Muchkund Dubey, President, Council for Social Development, New Delhi. 6. Dr. Rajeev Dhavan, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court 7. Prof. B.S. Chimni, School of International Studies, JNU 8. Prof. Mahendra Lama, School of International Studies, JNU The Expert Committee has been requested to go through the Model National Law on Refugees clause by clause and give its comments thereon to the Commission. A meeting of the Expert Committee took place on 9 March 2004. After a detailed discussion on the humanitarian considerations, security concerns and other related aspects, the Chairperson of the Commission, Dr. Justice A.S. Anand requested the Members of the Expert Committee to give their individual comments on Model National Law on Refugees and other general aspects as well as specific issues to be addressed in this regard. ANNUAL REPORT 2003-04