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Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
‘Take us home': Birbhum women seek Didi's help in vid appeal from B'desh
1 2 Kolkata: In a video message, members of two Birbhum families pushed to Bangladesh by BSF made an appeal to Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee to arrange for their return to India. TOI had earlier reported that six Birbhum residents, including three minors, were nabbed by Delhi cops on June 18 and sent to Bangladesh on June 26. Two habeas corpus petitions were filed in Calcutta High Court. Among the detained were Sweety Bibi and her two minor sons, and Danish Sheikh, his wife Sunali Khatun and their 5-year-old son. "We are not Bangladeshis. We went to Delhi for work but police labelled us Bangladeshis. We showed Aadhaar cards, but Delhi police did not accept them. We are from Birbhum's Paikar, we have our ancestral home there," Sweety and Sunali said in their appeal. The two women and the children stood with folded hands as they spoke. "The police took away our mobile phones and money. They tortured us and sent us here. We have nothing to feed our children, no place to stay. Mamatadidi, please take us back," they said. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata TMC MP and chairman of Bengal migrant workers' welfare board Samirul Islam posted the video on X. Pointing out that PM Narendra Modi had spoken extensively about infiltration during his speech in Durgapur on Friday, Islam said: "Despite being Indian citizens, their only 'crime' was speaking Bengali in BJP-governed Delhi, where they lived for years in search of work. Sunali, eight months pregnant, is now wandering helplessly in Bangladesh — punished for being Bengali in a country where her own govt refuses to protect her. " The MP urged Modi: "It is your duty to stand by them and safeguard their rights."
Time of India
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
6 from Birbhum nabbed by Delhi cops, pushed into B'desh: Pleas in HC
1 2 3 Kolkata: Six Birbhum residents, including three minors, who worked as ragpickers in Delhi, were labelled 'Bangladeshi' and nabbed by police on June 18 and pushed into Bangladesh by BSF on June 26, two habeas corpus petitions filed in Calcutta High Court alleged. HC was likely to take up the petitions on Friday, Trinamool Rajya Sabha MP and state migrant workers' welfare board chairperson Samirul Islam said. The pleas said two families of migrant workers were picked up by Delhi Police during an "identity verification drive" among the Bengali-speaking population. Among the detained, Sweety Bibi and her two minor sons as well as Danish Sheikh, his wife Sunali Khatun and their five-year-old son were sent to Bangladesh, Islam alleged. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata Pintu Sheikh of Murarai Nagarik Mancha, a local Birbhum citizens' forum, said Sunali and Danish were their neighbours. "Sunali's sister informed us of what had happened. On July 6, I took her father Bhodu Sk to Paikar police station and lodged a missing diary," he said. "Sunali is now four months pregnant. It is terrible that their five-year-old son is also going through these traumatic events, only because they speak Bengali," Pintu added. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Sunali's sister, Roshni Bibi, who also works as a ragpicker in Delhi, said: "From June 18 to June 22, they were kept in Delhi's Katju Nagar police station. I met her there. My sister later called me from Bangladesh and said some people had given her shelter on seeing that she was pregnant." The petition said Sweety's husband, Azizul Dewan, went missing four years ago, so she supported the family, including her aged and ailing parents. The HC petitions stated that all six were Indian citizens and permanent residents of Paikar, and were unlawfully detained by Delhi Police in an extrajudicial manner. The petitions said they had valid Indian documents; proof of their parents' citizenship was also submitted in court. The petitions said the six were deprived of their liberty and had their human rights violated, because they were detained and pushed out of the country for speaking their mother tongue, undermining the pluralistic ethos of India.
Indian Express
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘We will approach court to bring them back': Families of migrants pushed into Bangladesh lodge missing diary with Bengal police
Family members of a husband, wife, and son who were allegedly pushed into Bangladesh after they were detained in Delhi for 'being illegal immigrants' have lodged a missing diary with the Paikar police in West Bengal's Birbhum. They plan to approach the Calcutta High Court, seeking the residents' return. Danish Sheikh, his wife Sunali Khatun, and their eight-year-old son — natives of Paikar village — were allegedly deported to Bangladesh on June 26, days after being picked up by the Delhi Police. The family said they had been working as ragpickers in Delhi for the past 20 years. According to the family, the deportation was carried out despite them allegedly submitting documents to prove their nativity of Bengal. On Sunday, Sunali's father, Bhodu Sheikh, lodged a missing diary at the local police station. He said Danish, Sunali, and their two children had left for Delhi from Paikar on May 5. 'Since July 4, we have not been able to contact them,' he said. The Migrant Labour Welfare Board in West Bengal said it would help the family move the Calcutta High Court with a habeas corpus plea. 'This is happening every day. Our migrant labourers and their families are being targeted as illegal Bangladeshis simply because they speak Bengali… We will appeal to the court to intervene, bring the family back to India and present them before the court,' said Samirul Islam, chairman of the board. 'I have filed a missing diary at the local police station. Tomorrow we plan to go to Calcutta High Court. My daughter, her husband and their eight-year-old son were detained by Delhi Police and pushed into Bangladesh. My daughter has made frantic calls from Bangladesh,' said Bhodu Sheikh, speaking to The Indian Express from Birbhum. Family members claimed Danish, Sunali and their minor son were detained on June 18 by the police and taken to the K N Katju Marg police station in Delhi. 'All documents, including land deeds, were provided to the police. But they didn't budge,' said Sunali's cousin Roshni Bibi, speaking over the phone from Delhi. 'Their second child, a girl, was not detained as she was staying with a relative.' However, the Delhi Police maintained that the family was deported after due process. 'They were deported to Bangladesh on June 26 after proper verification at the local police level and a thorough interrogation by the Foreigners Regional Registration Office. They hail from Bagerhat, Bangladesh,' Rajeev Ranjan, DCP (Rohini), told The Indian Express earlier. The case comes amid a spate of similar incidents in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh. On June 14, seven persons from West Bengal were allegedly detained by Mumbai Police and deported by the BSF at around 3:30 am. Following intervention by the Bengal government, four youths from Murshidabad, one from Purba Bardhaman, and a married couple from North 24 Parganas were brought back from Bangladesh and sent home. Ravik Bhattacharya is the Chief of Bureau of The Indian Express, Kolkata. Over 20 years of experience in the media industry and covered politics, crime, major incidents and issues, apart from investigative stories in West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and Andaman Nicobar islands. Ravik won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2007 for political reporting. Ravik holds a bachelor degree with English Hons from Scottish Church College under Calcutta University and a PG diploma in mass communication from Jadavpur University. Ravik started his career with The Asian Age and then moved to The Statesman, The Telegraph and Hindustan Times. ... Read More
Indian Express
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Detained in Delhi days ago, ‘Bengal family' of three pushed into Bangladesh
IN A fresh incident, a family of three, including their minor son, was detained in Delhi as 'illegal Bangladeshis' and then finally 'pushed into the neighbouring country,' their relatives said. The relatives claimed that the family hails from Birbhum in West Bengal. A senior police officer in Delhi said that Danish Sheikh, his wife Sunali Khatun and their minor son have 'all been deported to Bangladesh after proper verification'. This comes close on the heels of such detentions in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh. Recently, a total of seven persons, hailing from West Bengal, were detained by the Mumbai police and pushed into Bangladesh by BSF at 3:30 am on June 14. Apart from four youths in Murshidabad, one from Purba Bardhaman, a husband–wife duo from North 24 Parganas district was brought back from Bangladesh after Bengal government's intervention. After intervention by the TMC government in Bengal, the individuals were brought back and sent to their homes. 'They all have been deported to Bangladesh on June 26 after proper verification at the local police level first and after that a thorough interrogation by the Foreigners Regional Registration Office office. They hail from Bagerhat, Bangladesh,' said Rajeev Ranjan, DCP (Rohini). 'This cannot be tolerated. This is happening every day. Despite showing all proof, including land records, this has happened,' claimed Samirul Islam, chairman of the migrant labour welfare board and Rajya Sabha MP. 'Our government has intervened, but the administration in BJP-ruled states and in Delhi are not paying heed. We will move to court on Monday and appeal to the court to produce them before the judge. Is it a fault to speak in Bengali outside Bengal?' claimed Islam. According to the family members, Sheikh, his wife Sunali and their minor son were picked up by the police and taken to a police station in Delhi. The family members claimed they (Sheikh and his wife) belong to Paikar village under Muraroi police station limits in Birbhum district. 'They are migrant labourers who have been working as ragpickers in Delhi for the last 20 years. They were picked up by the police on July 18. All documents, including land deeds, were provided to the police. But they didn't budge,' said Roshni Bibi, a cousin of Sunali, speaking to The Indian Express over phone from Delhi. 'Their second child, a girl, was not detained as she was with a relative in another place. We did not know what happened to the family until they called us from Bangladesh. They said someone has given them shelter there but could not specify the location,' said Roshni Bibi. 'They worked for several years in Delhi as ragpickers. Like most migrant workers, they visit their native village during festivities. They visited here and left for Delhi just one-and-a-half months ago,' said Rocky Sheikh, a cousin of Sunali and a resident of Birbhum. Ravik Bhattacharya is the Chief of Bureau of The Indian Express, Kolkata. Over 20 years of experience in the media industry and covered politics, crime, major incidents and issues, apart from investigative stories in West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and Andaman Nicobar islands. Ravik won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2007 for political reporting. Ravik holds a bachelor degree with English Hons from Scottish Church College under Calcutta University and a PG diploma in mass communication from Jadavpur University. Ravik started his career with The Asian Age and then moved to The Statesman, The Telegraph and Hindustan Times. ... Read More
