BSF hands over 15 men at Benapole

Staff Reporter:

Fifteen Bangladeshi nationals were handed over to Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) at the Raghunathpur checkpost in Benapole on Saturday night, following their eviction from India during a drive against undocumented foreign residents.

The group, which included women and children, was returned around 9 pm after Indian authorities demolished their makeshift homes and detained them for living in the country without valid documents. A formal flag meeting between BGB and the Border Security Force (BSF) later confirmed their repatriation.

Those returned have been identified as Hossain Ali, 25, Hafizur Rahman, 31, Bablu Rahman, 42, Abdul Hannan, 60, Taizul Islam, 43, Aminur Rahman, 56, Abdullah Al Mamun, 29, Aklima Khatun, 52, Shahanara Khatun, 15, Reshma Khatun, 28, Ajmira, 5, Tahamina Begum, 30, Jannatul Bushra, 4, Nasima Khatun, 41, and Shefali Khatun, 36. All are from various parts of Satkhira and Khulna.

Speaking after his return, Hossain Ali said he had crossed into India roughly five to seven years ago in search of work.

“Everything was going fine until the new SIR system came in. After that, police began clearing out anyone without proper papers. They tore down our homes. We had no choice but to surrender to BSF,” he said.

BGB officials confirmed that the 15 individuals were verified as Bangladeshi citizens after their national identity cards, birth certificates and other documents were checked.

“Once their identities were confirmed, we accepted them from BSF at the Raghunathpur BOP,” an officer said.

A second flag meeting held around 10 pm formalised the handover, with Petrapole BSF camp commander AC Praveen Chand handing them over to BGB’s Raghunathpur BOP commander Mizanur Rahman.

Benapole Port Police later completed official procedures and released the group to their families. Officer-in-charge Abdul Al Mamun said, “BGB handed them over to us following the flag meeting, and after recording a general diary entry, we released them to their relatives.”

According to BGB sources, the group had entered India through border routes in Satkhira and the Sundarbans with the help of brokers. Many had been living and working in the Kolkata region for up to four years before being detained in the latest crackdown.

Local officials said similar cases may rise in the coming weeks as Indian authorities continue enforcing stricter checks on undocumented foreigners.