More West Bengal migrants pushed into Bangladesh, repatriated after State’s intervention

The couple was handed over by Border Guard Bangladesh to the BSF after a flag meeting along the International Border in Uttar Dinajpur district on June 17, 2025. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Two more migrant workers from West Bengal, who were picked up from Maharashtra and allegedly pushed into Bangladesh by the Border Security Force (BSF), were repatriated to the State on Tuesday (June 17, 2025).

Fazer Mandal and his wife Taslima Mandal, residents of Bagda in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, went to Maharashtra in search of work, where they were arrested on the suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals.

On Tuesday (June 17, 2025), the couple was handed over by Border Guard Bangladesh to the BSF after a flag meeting along the International Border in Uttar Dinajpur district. They were handed over to the personnel of the Raiganj police station in North Dinajpur district.

Earlier this week, on Sunday (June 15, 2025), three migrant workers from West Bengal, who were picked up by Mumbai police and allegedly pushed into Bangladesh by the BSF, were handed over to the Mekhliganj police station in Cooch Behar district.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday (June 16, 2025) accused Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments in different parts of the country of targeting Bengali-speaking citizens and alleged they were labelling residents of the State with valid documents as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Samirul Islam said seven migrants had been recently pushed into Bangladesh by the BSF, and then repatriated to West Bengal. Mr. Islam, the Chairperson of the West Bengal Migrant Welfare Board, said that the migrants were deported to Bangladesh despite showing all relevant proof of being Indians.

“The Maharashtra Police first detained them on suspicion of being Bangladeshis and then handed them over to the BSF, which carried out the final act of deporting these poor migrant workers to Bangladesh — only because they spoke Bengali,” Mr. Islam said.

The Trinamool Congress leader asked why the Maharashtra Police had handed over these migrant workers to the BSF without informing the West Bengal government, and the BSF had not contacted the local administration to verify their identities before forcibly deporting them to another country.

“Is there a larger plan for these BJP-ruled States and the BSF to target and harass Bengali-speaking migrant workers? We will not let this issue go. We will expose the dark forces behind this misdeed and ensure justice,” Mr. Islam posted on social media.

Published - June 17, 2025 10:23 pm IST