A total of 150 Bangladeshi nationals detained in Jammu and Kashmir on charges of living there illegally have been taken to Bagdogra airport in West Bengal and handed over to India’s Border Security Force (BSF), officials concerned have said. They are understood to have been taken there as part of the process of sending them back to Bangladesh.
The 150 were flown to Bagdogra from Srinagar on Monday in a special Indian Air Force aircraft and handed to the BSF on landing.
As of midday on 7 October, however, there was no public official information from the West Bengal government or the BSF on whether a second batch of 150 Bangladeshis had been brought to Bagdogra, or whether any of them had crossed the border back into Bangladesh.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration and police have for several months been checking the identity and documents of foreign nationals living in different parts of the valley. Officials claim about 600 Bangladeshi nationals have been identified in the process.
Many of them had long been working as labourers in various parts of Kashmir, in construction and other daily-wage jobs.
Police sources say workers were asked to show Aadhaar cards and other required documents during the checks. After discrepancies were found in some people’s papers, a detailed check of their nationality began. The sources say nationality was later confirmed by verifying information with the Bangladeshi authorities.
The figures for Bangladeshis identified in Kashmir vary. The Jammu and Kashmir administration had told the central government’s high-level committee on demographic change that 504 Bangladeshi nationals were on record in the union territory, 46 in the Jammu region and 458 in the Kashmir valley.
A recent police survey, on the other hand, claims to have identified about 600. On 26 May India’s home ministry formed a high-level committee on demographic change headed by retired judge Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar. It is to review changes in population in different regions due to illegal immigration and other causes and recommend policy and administrative measures, and is due to report within a year.
On 30 September the Jammu and Kashmir administration declared 12 temporary structures in the Pantha Chowk area of Srinagar a temporary holding camp for illegal foreign immigrants. Administrative sources say those concerned are to be kept there until checks of identity and nationality are complete.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said it is not lawful for people who came to India from Bangladesh without permission to stay there. He has also said that the Bangladeshis living in Kashmir have not so far caused any major problem.
There has been no detailed official statement from the West Bengal government or the BSF on the next movements of the 150 taken to Bagdogra, so it is not yet clear when and by what process they will be sent back to Bangladesh.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report