Delhi seeks Dhaka’s help in repatriation of ‘illegals’

New Delhi yesterday sought Dhaka's cooperation in expediting the repatriation of alleged undocumented Bangladeshis from India, three days after the BJP swept the West Bengal assembly election.

The request follows Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman's remark that Dhaka would take action if "push-in" incidents occur under the changed political circumstances in West Bengal.

"Push-in" refers to the practice of Indian authorities pushing suspected undocumented migrants across the India-Bangladesh border into Bangladesh without formal deportation procedures or prior verification by Bangladeshi authorities.

Responding to Khalilur's remark, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the comments must be viewed in a certain context, reports The Statesman, a Kolkata-based English-language daily.

"We have seen comments of this nature over the last several days. These comments must be seen in the context of the core issue of the repatriation of illegal Bangladeshis from India. This obviously requires cooperation from Bangladesh. Over 2,860 cases of nationality verification are pending with Bangladesh, and several of them have been pending for over five years...

"We expect Bangladesh to expedite nationality verification so that the repatriation of illegal immigrants can take place smoothly," he said.

The MEA spokesperson added the repatriation of "illegal Bangladeshis" would require cooperation from Dhaka.

The issue of alleged infiltration by Bangladeshis was among the BJP’s key poll planks in West Bengal.

The saffron party had vowed to stop so-called infiltration by ensuring fencing along the India-Bangladesh border. It had also promised to identify "illegal Bangladeshis" in the state and deport them.

India stepped up its drive against alleged undocumented Bangladeshis last year and sent hundreds towards the Bangladesh border, especially through Assam, Tripura and Meghalaya. Delhi said these were illegal migrants being deported, while Bangladesh raised serious concerns over "push-ins" without proper verification or formal repatriation procedures.