Staff Reporter :
Bangladesh has lodged a formal diplomatic protest with India over recent incidents of ‘push-ins’ along the shared border, calling for an immediate cessation of such activities.
A diplomatic note was dispatched to New Delhi on 9 May following incidents that occurred on 7 and 8 May, during which over 300 individuals were reportedly forced into Bangladesh territory.
Diplomatic sources confirmed that the note emphasized the gravity of the situation and urged India to uphold existing bilateral agreements concerning border management.
The issue was also a key topic of discussion during a meeting of the Advisory Council Committee on Law and Order, held at the Secretariat on Monday.
The session was chaired by Home Affairs Adviser Brigadier General (retd.) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, with Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Director General Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui in attendance.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, the BGB chief disclosed that on 7 and 8 May, the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) pushed 202 individuals into Bangladesh through remote, unmonitored sections of the border. “Every inch of the border cannot be manned round-the-clock. These push-ins occurred when no security personnel were present,” he explained.
A further group of 78 individuals was reportedly transported by the BSF via ship and left on Mandarbaria Char, a remote island in the Sundarbans, on 9 May. According to intelligence sources, an additional 200 to 300 people remain gathered near the Khagrachhari border, raising concerns about more such incidents.
The BGB chief said the authorities are currently verifying the identities of those who entered the country. “Some of these individuals had been living in India for as long as 20 to 25 years, while others migrated in the last few years. Many even had Indian Aadhaar cards and other documents, which were seized before they were forced across the border,” he said.
Among those pushed in were 39 Rohingya individuals previously registered as Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMNs) in Bangladesh. These individuals had left refugee camps and somehow ended up in India. The BGB, in coordination with the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC) and the UNHCR, has since returned them to the camps.
Calling the development “a matter of serious concern,” the BGB chief said pushing back registered refugees contravenes international human rights obligations. Displaying UNHCR-issued identity cards of several Rohingyas marked “UNHCR IN”-indicating Indian registration-he stressed, “Refugees should remain in the country where they are officially registered. This forced relocation is unacceptable.”
Bangladesh is raising the issue with UNHCR and the Indian government and has already held a flag meeting with Indian authorities. Further diplomatic engagement is ongoing.
In its note to India, Bangladesh cited violations of several key agreements, including the 1975 Joint India-Bangladesh Guidelines for Border Authorities, the 2011 Coordinated Border Management Plan (CBMP), and understandings reached during BGB-BSF Director General-level talks.
The note reiterated Bangladesh’s willingness to repatriate confirmed citizens under the agreed process but expressed strong objections to India’s unilateral actions. It also underscored that Myanmar nationals should be returned to Myanmar-not Bangladesh-and categorically rejected any attempt to push Indian citizens into Bangladeshi territory.
“Such actions disrupt mutual trust and undermine the stability of border regions,” the letter warned, calling for strengthened coordination between border forces to prevent future incidents.
s tensions simmer, all eyes are now on how India responds to Bangladesh’s diplomatic outreach and whether concrete measures will be taken to reinforce border cooperation.
