Over 2,000 illegal immigrants ‘pushed back' into Bangladesh since Operation Sindoor

Indian Express

2 days ago

More than 2,000 alleged illegal Bangladeshi immigrants are estimated to have been 'pushed back' across the border by Indian authorities since Operation Sindoor began in the early hours of May 7, following a nationwide verification exercise, Government sources told The Indian Express.
During the same period, they said, a similar number of immigrants showed up near the India-Bangladesh border voluntarily to cross over amid the fear generated by the crackdown.
According to the sources, the Government action is taking place along the Bangladesh border in Tripura, Meghalaya and Assam. Gujarat was among the first to begin the round-up and has accounted for nearly half of all those who have been 'pushed back', they said. Delhi and Haryana, too, have sent back immigrants in large numbers with the rest being rounded up from Assam, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, the sources said.
'It is an ongoing process and all states which have cities with significant economic activity are rounding up such illegal immigrants after verification of their documents. A focused effort began in this direction following the Pahalgam attacks in April. Since Operation Sindoor, it has picked up pace. Gujarat was the first off the blocks followed by Delhi and Haryana. More states will begin sending soon. The instructions from the Ministry of Home Affairs are clear in this regard and the states, too, are cooperating,' a senior Government source said.
According to the source, these alleged illegal immigrants are being ferried to the borders in IAF aircraft from various locations and handed over to the BSF to be held in makeshift camps along the border. They are provided food and some Bangladeshi currency, if needed, and 'pushed back' into their country after a few hours of detention, the source said.
Referring to the action happening along the border in Tripura, Meghalaya and Assam, a security establishment officer said, 'There is a perception that these states have been chosen because they are BJP-ruled. But that is not true. BJP is a small minority in Meghalaya. These states were chosen because of the ease in pushing back from these states. In West Bengal, because of the nature of the border, which often passes through the middle of villages or even houses, and the familial connections on either side, there was fear of law and order issues cropping up.'
According to another official, just under 2,000 Bangladeshi immigrants have showed up on the border voluntarily to cross over. 'Because of largescale reporting in the media about a crackdown, many illegal immigrants from Bangladesh are voluntarily leaving the country for the fear of being detained,' the official said.
According to sources, the operation has been running smoothly so far with the Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) 'cooperating' with their Indian counterparts.
'It is because most of those who have been rounded up are not resisting deportation. Barring those who came to India decades ago, most are willing to go back. Once rounded up and taken to the border, they call up their relatives in Bangladesh who come to pick them up. Most of them know that once they are rounded up, they will end up in detention centres or jails. A majority of them are poor labourers with no means to fight a legal battle. They prefer to go back to their families,' another security establishment officer said.
Sources, however, said they expect some official unease in Bangladesh once the numbers swell to 10,000 or 20,000 a week. 'This is only a temporary solution. Such exercises, albeit on a much smaller scale, have been carried out in the past as well, even under the UPA government. But these illegal immigrants often come back once the heat lowers. That is why the Government is pushing for biometric capture of all such immigrants who are being pushed back and integration with larger immigration data,' an official said.