The Crossbill News Desk
In a significant escalation of its "push back" strategy, the Indian government has deported nearly 700 undocumented migrants from Delhi to Bangladesh over the past six months, according to official sources.
The process gained momentum following last month’s terror attack in Pahalgam, prompting a capital-wide crackdown on undocumented foreign nationals, particularly Bangladeshis and Rohingya.
Following the attack, the Delhi Police, under directives from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), intensified their identification and detention drives. As a result, 470 undocumented Bangladeshi migrants and 50 other foreigners found to have overstayed their visas were identified.
These individuals were subsequently transported via special Indian Air Force flights from Hindon Air Base in Ghaziabad to Agartala, Tripura, before being deported across the land border into Bangladesh, The Indian Express reported.
A senior police official confirmed that the MHA had initiated a verification campaign last year aimed at tracking undocumented migrants.
“Around five makeshift holding centres were built by Delhi Police; they were told to coordinate with the FRRO (Foreigners Regional Registration Office), and drop the illegal migrants in a special plane to Agartala airport and West Bengal,” the official told the newspaper.
He added that three to four special flights had operated from the Hindon Air Base to Agartala over the past month to carry out the deportations.
The campaign is not limited to the national capital. Similar detentions have been reported from several Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled states, including Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Goa.
According to The Hindu, Delhi led the deportation numbers with at least 120 undocumented Bangladeshi migrants deported since January, followed by Maharashtra (110), Haryana (80), Rajasthan (70), Uttar Pradesh (65), Gujarat (65), and Goa (10).
Detainees from these states were handed over to the Border Security Force (BSF), which then deported them through designated points along the India-Bangladesh border.
A BSF official told The Hindu that over 1,200 Bangladeshis had been pushed back along the West Bengal sector alone this year.
“These arrests were made while they were trying to enter India from the land border. They were pushed back in the following days on the orders of the MHA,” the official said.
In Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on May 10 that the state would rely on the “push back” approach rather than formal legal repatriation mechanisms to curb illegal immigration.
However, this method has drawn diplomatic concern from Dhaka. On May 8, the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally raised objections with New Delhi over the practice, urging the Indian government to follow established repatriation protocols.
The letter expressed concern about people being forcibly pushed into Bangladesh without due process.
The deportation drive, seen as part of a broader push to tighten border controls and address security concerns, has sparked debate over the human rights implications and the potential strain on bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh.
The process gained momentum following last month’s terror attack in Pahalgam, prompting a capital-wide crackdown on undocumented foreign nationals, particularly Bangladeshis and Rohingya.
Following the attack, the Delhi Police, under directives from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), intensified their identification and detention drives. As a result, 470 undocumented Bangladeshi migrants and 50 other foreigners found to have overstayed their visas were identified.
These individuals were subsequently transported via special Indian Air Force flights from Hindon Air Base in Ghaziabad to Agartala, Tripura, before being deported across the land border into Bangladesh, The Indian Express reported.
A senior police official confirmed that the MHA had initiated a verification campaign last year aimed at tracking undocumented migrants.
“Around five makeshift holding centres were built by Delhi Police; they were told to coordinate with the FRRO (Foreigners Regional Registration Office), and drop the illegal migrants in a special plane to Agartala airport and West Bengal,” the official told the newspaper.
He added that three to four special flights had operated from the Hindon Air Base to Agartala over the past month to carry out the deportations.
The campaign is not limited to the national capital. Similar detentions have been reported from several Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled states, including Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Goa.
According to The Hindu, Delhi led the deportation numbers with at least 120 undocumented Bangladeshi migrants deported since January, followed by Maharashtra (110), Haryana (80), Rajasthan (70), Uttar Pradesh (65), Gujarat (65), and Goa (10).
Detainees from these states were handed over to the Border Security Force (BSF), which then deported them through designated points along the India-Bangladesh border.
A BSF official told The Hindu that over 1,200 Bangladeshis had been pushed back along the West Bengal sector alone this year.
“These arrests were made while they were trying to enter India from the land border. They were pushed back in the following days on the orders of the MHA,” the official said.
In Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on May 10 that the state would rely on the “push back” approach rather than formal legal repatriation mechanisms to curb illegal immigration.
However, this method has drawn diplomatic concern from Dhaka. On May 8, the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally raised objections with New Delhi over the practice, urging the Indian government to follow established repatriation protocols.
The letter expressed concern about people being forcibly pushed into Bangladesh without due process.
The deportation drive, seen as part of a broader push to tighten border controls and address security concerns, has sparked debate over the human rights implications and the potential strain on bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh.
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