Calcutta HC calls Bangladesh deportation of Birbhum residents illegal, orders return in 4 weeks

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Friday set aside the Centre’s decision to deport two women and their families from West Bengal’s Birbhum district to Bangladesh, after terming them “illegal immigrants”.

The court directed the Centre to ensure that Sonali Bibi, Sweety Bibi and four other deported family members, including three children, are brought back to India within a month.

The high court also rejected the central government’s appeal to grant a temporary stay on Friday’s order.

In July, PTI had visited both families in the Paikar area of Murarai, Birbhum post the deportation and reported on the plight of the members living on the Indian side of the border.

A division bench presided by Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty passed the order in connection with a habeas corpus petition filed by Bhodu Sheikh, who claimed that her daughter Sonali, currently nine months pregnant, along with her husband, Danesh Sheikh, and five-year-old son hailing from Murarai in Birbhum, were detained in Delhi and deported to Bangladesh.

Another petition from the same Birbhum neighbourhood by Amir Khan made a similar claim, stating that his sister Sweety Bibi and her two children were detained by the Delhi Police and pushed to the neighbouring country.

The petitioners alleged that the families, working as daily wage earners in Sector 26 of the Rohini area in Delhi for over two decades, were picked up by the AN Katju Marg Police on June 18 on suspicion of being illegal Bangladeshis, and subsequently pushed across the border on June 27.

The deportees were then reportedly arrested by the Bangladesh police.

Sonali’s family members also expressed concern over the citizenship status of her newborn child if she gave birth in Bangladesh.

Counsels representing both families submitted in court that the forceful and illegal deportation took place despite the suspects providing necessary citizenship documents, including their land ownership papers and voter cards of the parents and grandparents, before the authorities concerned.

The birth certificates of the deported children from state-run hospitals were also provided, they claimed in court.

In an affidavit-in-opposition filed by the Centre, the government claimed that the plea was not maintainable before the Calcutta High Court on grounds that a habeas corpus petition had earlier been moved before the Delhi High Court, alleging illegal detention of the said people and a separate petition challenging their deportation.

Additional Solicitor General Ashok Kumar Chakarborti, representing the Centre, had claimed that the Calcutta High Court has no jurisdiction with regard to the matter since the person who was stated to have been deported was detained in Delhi.

He claimed that the habeas corpus petition before the Calcutta High Court was filed suppressing the two petitions before the Delhi High Court.

During the course of the hearing, the Calcutta High Court had noted that the central government, in its affidavit, stated that FRRO (Foreigner Regional Registration Office), Delhi, being a civil authority, has been repatriating illegal migrants of Bangladesh as per instruction dated May 2, 2025 issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs in a memo.

Detailing the protocols to be followed for deportation, the memo states that in respect of Bangladesh/Myanmar nationals identified to be staying in an unauthorised manner in any particular state or union territory, an inquiry will be conducted by the state government or union territory concerned, following which the process of deportation would be taken up.

Responding to Friday’s order, Trinamool Congress MP Samirul Islam accused the BJP of resorting to lies to push its “anti-Bengali agenda”.

“Today the Calcutta High Court tore apart the BJP’s sham — their attempt to brand pregnant Birbhum resident Sunali Khatun and five others (including children) as ‘Bangladeshi nationals’ was exposed as a lie,” he wrote on X.

“I will never forget how BJP stooges launched vile, personal attacks on me and my family when I stood with these families — true sons and daughters of Birbhum. This is not just my victory; it is Bengal’s victory — a rebuke to the BJP’s anti-Bengali, anti-poor policy.

“Under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, we will keep fighting until these venomous, anti-people forces are removed democratically,” he added.