Anowara Begum from the Kalia sub-division in Narail district of Bangladesh stood near the Hakimpur check post in North 24-Parganas on Wednesday, carefully drying a rain-soaked photocopy of her birth certificate — the only document she hoped would serve as her passage back home.
Along with around 100 others, the homemaker in her 20s waited in a queue as police officers verified their documents amid growing uncertainty over what awaited them in Bangladesh after years of living illegally in India.
The scene at Hakimpur, 75km from Calcutta, reflected the anxiety among undocumented Bangladeshi nationals rushing to return to their homeland after the new BJP government in Bengal made it clear that it would act decisively against infiltration and began setting up “holding centres” under its “Detect, Delete, Deport” policy.
The police on Wednesday started scrutinising documents of Bangladeshi nationals gathered near the border to establish their nationality before initiating the pushback process in coordination with the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).
The officers examined birth certificates, proof of residence and other identity documents linked to Bangladesh to avoid legal complications and ensure that only verified Bangladeshi nationals are sent across the border.
Sources claimed that till Wednesday evening, around 70 Bangladeshi nationals had been verified and handed over to the BSF for possible pushback, while nearly 50 others had been shifted to a motel around 20km from Hakimpur for temporary shelter and further verification. However, neither the police nor the BSF confirmed the numbers.
Several Bangladeshi men, women and children stood in long queues with bundles of documents as personnel from Swarupnagar police station checked their identities in detail.
“We have been instructed by higher authorities to first ascertain their Bangladeshi identity and then keep them in shelters until the BSF takes custody for pushback. The verification is necessary to ensure that no non-Bangladeshi national crosses the border illegally into the neighbouring country,” an officer of Swarupnagar police station said.
“The matter is being handled at the top administrative level. We have no idea what will happen to those who fail to produce credible documents establishing their roots in Bangladesh,” the officer added.
Police sources said efforts were also underway to ascertain whether any of the undocumented migrants had enrolled themselves as voters in India or obtained Aadhaar cards. “The objective is to ensure permanent deletion from all databases followed by deportation,” another police officer said.
Fear of detention and deportation appeared to have triggered panic among undocumented Bangladeshi migrants, around 300 of whom have gathered near the Hakimpur border since Tuesday in a desperate attempt to return before stricter action against infiltration begins.
Akhtarul Mondal, a resident of Jessore who had been living at Durganagar in North 24-Parganas, said he entered India through a conduit after paying ₹10,000.
“There was no work in Bangladesh. I was compelled to come to India and survived by working as a construction labourer. But the BJP’s victory changed everything. I would not have returned to Bangladesh had Trinamool remained in power,” he said.
“Many people managed to get Aadhaar cards, voter cards and even became beneficiaries of different state welfare schemes after entering India. But I could not manage any documents, not even Aadhaar, and therefore I no longer have the courage to stay back,” Akhtarul added.
Hriday Molla, another Bangladeshi national from Khulna, waited in the verification queue carrying a small bag of clothes and papers. He had allegedly been staying in Barasat for more than a decade without valid documents.
According to Hriday, the police had identified him a few years ago and advised him to leave India at the earliest instead of initiating legal proceedi