Indian authorities have forcibly expelled over 1,500 ethnic Bengali Muslims to Bangladesh since May 7 without due process, according to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report. The crackdown, intensified after an April attack in Kashmir targets impoverished migrant workers across BJP-led states like Assam, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat. HRW confirms many victims are Indian citizens whose identity documents were destroyed by police to fabricate "illegal immigrant" status. Bangladesh’s Border Guard reported the expulsions, noting India provided no official data. Dhaka condemned the "push-ins" as violations of bilateral protocols.
Witnesses described harrowing violence by India’s Border Security Force (BSF). Khairul Islam, 51, from Assam, recounted being beaten, gagged, and forced into Bangladesh at gunpoint: "I walked into Bangladesh like a dead body. I thought they would kill me". Nazimuddin Sheikh, a Mumbai migrant worker, testified police tore his Indian ID papers and coerced him to "admit" Bangladeshi nationality during beatings. HRW documented 18 such cases, including pregnant women and children dumped at borders without recourse to legal appeals.
The expulsions leverage Assam’s flawed citizenship verification system, where Foreigners Tribunals routinely target Bengali Muslims over minor document discrepancies. Over 165,992 people have been declared "irregular immigrants" through opaque proceedings, often without notice. Despite pending Supreme Court appeals, many, like a Barpeta wage worker were forcibly deported. Assam’s BJP Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma openly endorsed bypassing tribunals: "We won’t send them to a tribunal; we will just keep pushing them back". The 2019 National Register of Citizens excluded 1.9 million people, predominantly Muslims.
The campaign aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rhetoric labeling Bangladeshi migrants "infiltrators" and "termites." HRW Asia Director Elaine Pearson accused the BJP of "fuelling discrimination" to mobilize Hindu voters, undermining India’s tradition of refuge. The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), fast-tracking citizenship for non-Muslim refugees, institutionalizes this bias. Bangladesh has refused to accept deportees without verified nationality checks, calling India’s actions "unacceptable." The UN urged an immediate halt, citing violations of non-refoulement principles.