West Bengal begins deportation drive
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday said a large number of alleged illegal Bangladeshi nationals have gathered at the Hakimpur checkpoint in North 24 Parganas district’s Basirhat subdivision and urged authorities to expedite their deportation. “Jaldi jaldi bhago nahi toh jo karna hai sarkar karega (Leave quickly or the Government will take necessary action),” Adhikari said, referring to the gathering at the border point and directing officials to ensure that they are sent back at the earliest. He claimed that the people assembled at the border point were willing to return to Bangladesh.
“We do not want to feed them in jails or waste public money on them. This is actually harming the Indians, especially in West Bengal. The law was there, but was not utilised by a few people for vote bank. We will go beyond vote bank and implement this for the sake of the country and the State,” he said.
At Hakimpur in North 24 Parganas’ Basirhat subdivision, over 100 alleged Bangladeshi immigrants gathered near the BSF checkpoint over the last two days, carrying trolleys, utensils and bundles — reminders of lives packed in haste and uncertainty. BSF personnel indicated that many arriving at Hakimpur were voluntarily approaching authorities seeking repatriation.
The new State Government’s decision to launch district-level holding centres for suspected illegal immigrants appears to have triggered a “reverse exodus” through the international border, with scores of alleged Bangladeshi infiltrators gathering at the Hakimpur checkpoint in North 24 Parganas seeking to return home. The renewed rush comes days after Adhikari announced that West Bengal would aggressively implement a “detect, delete and deport” policy against infiltrators.
The State Government has set up holding centres in all districts to house apprehended foreigners and released foreign prisoners until deportation formalities are completed. Malda became the first district where such a facility became operational, housing nine suspected Bangladeshi nationals.
