SIR In Bengal: Desperate For Repatriation, Illegal Bangladeshis Make A Beeline At Border Checkposts

Swarupnagar (West Bengal): The onset of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal has driven illegal Bangladeshi immigrants to crowd BSF checkposts, desperate to repatriate amid the fear of getting caught. The illegal entry of Bangladeshi nationals to West Bengal and other border states through agents/brokers is nothing new. But this time, the SIR exercise has led to them being filtered out.

The BSF checkpost at Hikma in Swarupnagar of the North 24 Parganas district is seeing a beeline of people with bags and baggage, admitting that they are Bangladeshi nationals who entered India illegally several years ago in the hope of making money. About 300 illegal Bangladeshis are desperate to return to their home country through the checkpost directly. However, BSF officials have clearly stated that no one will be allowed to cross the border without valid documents, making the situation dire.

"BSF jawans are quite vigilant. No infiltrator will be allowed to enter Bangladesh illegally. If anyone tries to do so, necessary action will be taken," said a BSF official.

The BSF checkpost at Hakimpur. (ETV Bharat)

Sabina Parveen, a Bangladeshi, said, "My home is in Satkhira district of Bangladesh. I was living in India illegally, driven by poverty. I don't have any documents. Now I want to return to Satkhira. That is what I am waiting for here."

Another Bangladeshi national, Mohammad Ashraf, said, "My home is in Kushmandi village in Bangladesh. I used to live here in Birati. Now I will go back to my village. I have no documents. I was living in this country illegally. There are many like me here. Some used to live in Chinar Park and some other places. I was forced to come to India because of employment. There was nothing I could do."

Soon after the SIR was announced, there was a sudden rush among the illegal entrants to return to Bangladesh. Since the beginning of November, over 100 Bangladeshis have been caught by the BSF while trying to flee through the Bithari and Tarali borders of Swarupnagar.

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