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‘Pushed back’, pregnant Bengal woman now lands up in jail in Bangladesh; slapped with Foreigners Act
This comes close on the heels of detentions of Bengali migrant labourers in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh during the drive to nab illegal Bangladeshis
Sunali Bibi was sent to Bangladesh along with her husband, Danish, and son.
A DAY after her arrest in Bangladesh, a woman from West Bengal who is eight months pregnant was produced in a court in that country, along with others, and sent to judicial custody. The Bangladesh Police slapped sections under Passport Act and Foreigners Act against them.
Sunali Bibi, her husband Danish Sheikh and her eight-year-old son along with another family (also from Bengal) who were arrested from Chapainawabganj district of Bangladesh on Thursday were produced to a local court on Friday. They were produced along with another family – a woman and her two sons.
“All the six persons were produced to Chapainawabganj Sadar Court. Since we have found Indian documents from them and they lacked valid documents to enter Bangladesh, sections relating to Passport Act and Foreigners Act has been pressed in the case. The court remanded them in jail,” said a senior officer with the Chapainawabganj district police.
“The pregnant woman will receive all medical care, according to jail rules. If needed and recommended by doctors in jail, she may also avail medical care at government hospital,” added the officer.
Sunali Bibi, her husband Danish and their son, residents of Paikar village in Birbhum district, were pushed into Bangladesh on June 26 after they were detained by Delhi police. The family, migrant labourers from Bengal, have been working as rag-pickers in Delhi for the past 20 years.
Another family, Sweety Bibi with her two sons, aged 6 and 16 years, residents of Dhitora Village under the Murarai police station in Birbhum were also detained and pushed into Bangladesh at the same time.
Both families were detained at the K N Katju Marg police station and then deported as Bangladeshi citizens.
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After deportation, a video of Sunali and others appealing for help from an undisclosed location in Bangladesh went viral in social media.
On Thursday, Sunali Bibi and others were arrested by the Bangladesh police. After interrogation, police said that the families were pushed into the country by the BSF. After a brief stay in Dhaka, they moved to an accommodation in Chapainawabganj district.
“We are aware of the situation and we are with the families. We will leave no stones unturned to bring them back. They are residents of West Bengal and citizens of India. We are looking into all legal recourse possible to bring them back,” said chairman of West Bengal Migrant Labour Welfare Board and TMC Rajya Sabha MP.
With the help of the West Bengal Migrant Labour Welfare Board, relatives of both the families filed a ‘habeas corpus’ case with the Calcutta High Court.
The habeas corpus was filed on July 8. The Division Bench of Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty and Justice Reetobroto Kumar Mitra heard the matter thrice. The next hearing is scheduled September 10.
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This comes close on the heels of detentions of Bengali migrant labourers in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh during the drive to nab illegal Bangladeshis.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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