BSF tells court Malda youth crossed into Bangladesh by mistake; family alleges forced deportation
Amir’s family has strongly disputed the BSF’s claim, accusing the force, under the Union home ministry, of “forcibly deporting” him in July after he was accused by Rajasthan police of being a Bangladeshi infiltrator
The Border Security Force (BSF) has told the Calcutta High Court that a 20-year-old migrant worker from Malda, West Bengal, "inadvertently" crossed the international border into Bangladesh.
According to a Telegraph India report, the youth, identified as Amir Sheikh from Jalalpur village in Kaliachak, was apprehended by BSF personnel when he allegedly attempted to re-enter India. He was then handed over to local police, BSF informed the court on Wednesday.
"The BSF said in its report that the person [Amir] had inadvertently crossed the international border and reached Bangladesh. He was apprehended by the BSF when he tried to re-enter the country (India) and was handed over to the local police," said Ashok Chakraborty, advocate appearing for the Union government.
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The submission came during the hearing of a habeas corpus petition before the division bench of Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty and Justice Reetobroto Kumar Mitra, where lawyers for the Centre presented the BSF's report. The force also informed the court that Amir was detained on Tuesday while "trying to cross over into Indian territory from Bangladesh."
However, Amir's family has strongly disputed the BSF's claim, accusing the force, under the Union home ministry, of "forcibly deporting" him in July after he was accused by Rajasthan police of being a Bangladeshi infiltrator.
"We all know what happened to my nephew. He was deported to Bangladesh after being detained by the Rajasthan police. The BSF had called us and asked us to take Amir back quietly, without informing anyone. They are just trying to suppress actual facts about his deportation," alleged Ajmaul Sheikh, Amir's uncle.
Family members said Amir had been in judicial custody in Rajasthan for three months before being "forced to walk into Bangladesh" on 22 July. His relatives claimed they were unaware of his whereabouts until a video emerged on social media showing him in tears, narrating his ordeal from Bangladesh. To establish his Indian citizenship, the family produced a land deed from 1941 bearing the British government seal.
The controversy has drawn criticism from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), which has vowed to prove through legal means that Amir was deported.
"After persecuting a poor man, now that they've been exposed, the BJP is resorting to lies. But of course, that's their policy. Let it be known, we have all the evidence that shows Amir was deported. We have been and will stay by his side legally. We even have the video Amir recorded from Bangladesh. We will legally prove that Amir was deported by the BSF and he did not go there voluntarily," Trinamool Rajya Sabha MP Samirul Islam, who also chairs the state's migrant welfare board, wrote on X.
