Bengal government intervenes after migrants mistakenly pushed across border; Centre facilitates return of three men
Three residents of West Bengal, who were forcibly pushed into Bangladesh by the Border Security Force (BSF) after being detained by Mumbai Police, were repatriated to India on Sunday. The incident sparked outrage after it was revealed that all five individuals involved were Indian nationals and had been wrongly labelled as Bangladeshi migrants, reported timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
The five men — Minarul Sekh (Beldanga), Nazimuddin Mondal (Hariharpara), Mehboob Sheikh (Bhagwangola), Dablu Sheikh (Ranitala) from Murshidabad, and Mustafa Kamal (Monteswar, East Burdwan) — were picked up earlier this month by Mumbai Police. They were reportedly sent first to Cooch Behar and then pushed across the border into Lalmonirhat, Bangladesh, without proper verification.
On Saturday, three of them released a video from Bangladesh, appealing directly to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for help. In response, Trinamool MP Samirul Islam, who heads Bengal’s migrant workers welfare board, raised the matter with the state administration and Centre.
Following a video appeal and Bengal government intervention, three men wrongly deported to Bangladesh have returned; two more expected shortly.
“The CM acted immediately. She instructed the administration to coordinate with the Centre and secure their return,” Islam said. A flag meeting between the BSF and Bangladesh’s Border Guard (BGB) was held, after which three of the five — Sekh, Mondal, and Kamal — were handed back to Indian authorities around 4 PM on Sunday at Mekhliganj, Cooch Behar.
Mekhliganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mani Bhusan Sarkar confirmed their arrival. “They are exhausted and clearly traumatised,” he said.
The remaining two — Mehboob Sheikh and Dablu Sheikh — are still in BGB custody and expected to be repatriated soon.
MP Islam condemned the mishandling by Mumbai Police, saying, “Just because the five spoke Bengali, they were mistaken for Bangladeshis and handed over to the BSF without identity checks. This is a grave injustice to poor migrant workers.”
Nazimuddin Mondal’s brother, Mabub Ali, said he was informed of his sibling’s return by local authorities and MLA Niamat Sheikh.