Seven Bengali Migrant Workers Return Home From Haryana Amid Harassment Reports
The migrant workers who had to spend a few days in a detention camp in Haryana were brought home.
Published : August 1, 2025 at 10:22 AM IST
Malda: Amid reports of harassment and detention of Bengali-speaking migrants in many states across the country, seven migrant labourers from Chanchal in West Bengal who were forced to flee from Haryana reached home on Thursday.
The migrant workers who had to spend a few days in a detention camp in Haryana were brought home thanks to the efforts of Isha Khan Choudhury MP. The administration has given tight security to the returned migrants.
Several workers from Pirojabad village of Hajatpur village under Chanchal police station had gone to work in Haryana. While most people declined to speak to the media about this issue, eventually a couple, Nurul Islam Khan and Nurjahan Bibi, who used to work in housekeeping, came forward and agreed to share the entire story.
Nurul said that police violence has increased in the last 10-20 days. "They used to pick us up from our house and take us to the police station. We fled to escape that violence. My wife and son also lived there. I have been working there for more than five years," he said.
“There is no work here,” he said, worried about how to support his family now. Nurjahan echoed her husband's fears. She worked as a housemaid and now struggles for food and a regular income in the village. Much of their belongings and money were left behind when they hurriedly returned.
Osman Ali, another migrant labourer who returned from Rangaipur village in Haryana, said police checked everyone’s documents and threatened anyone who made mistakes in giving their father’s names or other details. Despite the threats and uncomfortable living conditions, Osman said, most still feel they must go back to other states to work, simply to survive.
Prasun Das, who went to Haryana, said that although he was not physically harmed, he and others were kept in a building like a camp without enough food. Because he was Bengali-speaking, police called him “Bangladeshi” and threatened to send him out of India.
Meanwhile, efforts are on to bring back Aamir Sheikh, a young man from Jalalpur in Malda, stranded in Bangladesh after being allegedly pushed by the Border Security Force (BSF). Isha Khan Choudhury MP said that efforts are ongoing and negotiations are taking place with Bangladeshi authorities to bring back Aamir, who had gone to work in Rajasthan.
He met BSF Secretary General Daljit Singh Chowdhury in Delhi on Thursday in this regard. "The BSF knows exactly where Aamir is. The Indian Border Security Force is making every effort to bring him back to India. The BSF has already held three flag meetings with Bangladesh," he said, hoping Aamir will return soon.
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