Following the intervention by the TMC government in West Bengal, 36-year-old Mehbub Sheikh, a resident of Murshidabad who was picked up by Maharashtra Police and pushed into Bangladesh on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant, was brought back to the country on Monday.
Another youth from Murshidabad, Shamim Khan, who too was detained in Maharashtra and pushed into Bangladesh, was also brought back along with Mehbub, officials here in Kolkata said.
West Bengal Migrant Welfare Board chief Samirul Islam told The Indian Express that the intervention was made at the top-level of the state government.
“Under instructions of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the West Bengal government and police communicated to the Central government and the BSF. Mehbub Sheikh and Shamim Khan were brought back today (Monday). Three others were brought back on Sunday. We are verifying whether there are other residents of West Bengal who have been similarly pushed into Bangladesh,” Islam said.
Sheikh, who worked as a mason in Thane area near Mumbai, was picked by Maharashtra Police on June 11 on suspicion of being an illegal Bangladesh migrant, and by June 14 (Saturday, 3.30 am) he was sent to a BSF camp in Siliguri and pushed into the neighbouring country despite his family and local police sending necessary documents to prove that he was an Indian citizenship.
“We coordinated with BSF and now the youths are returning home,” said Superintendent of Police (Murshidabad) Kumar Sunny Raj. In a statement, Murshidabad Police said: “Upon receiving information, Murshidabad police immediately conducted local enquiries to establish the Indian citizenship of the individuals. After verifying relevant documents, they were submitted to the Border Security Force. Murshidabad police conducted prolonged coordination with the BSF. Later, the BSF conducted an urgent flag meeting with the Bangladesh Border Guard and brought back the youths.”
“Mehbub and Shamim have been handed over to Raiganj police station b y the BSF. We are now handing them over to Murshidabad police,” said Md Sana Akhtar, SP (Uttar Dinajpur).
Of the five men brought back since Sunday, four are from Murshidabad and one from Purba Bardhaman, police said. They have been identified as Mehbub Sheikh of Bhagwangola; Nazimuddin Mondal and Shamim Khan of Hariharpara; Minarul Sheikh of Beldanga – all Murshidabad; and Mostafa Kamal Sheikh of Monteswar in Purba Bardhaman district.
Mehbub Sheikh’s brother, Mujibur, said: “We are happy that he (Mehbub) is coming home. Today, a group of policemen came and took all the documents, including land records, voter card, ration card, Aadhaar card and others.”
Meanwhile, the three others — Nazimuddin Mondal, Minarul Sheikh and Mostafa Kamal Sheikh — were also picked up by the police in Maharashtra and later pushed into Bangladesh. They were handed over to Mekhliganj police station in Cooch Behar and are expected to reach their homes on Monday night.
“My brother worked in the wig-making business. He worked in Delhi and moved to Mumbai a month ago. He was staying in the Nalasopara area. He was picked up on June 9 along with two other men, who worked as masons. The next day we sent all the documents to the police. We also submitted documents to the local Beldanga police station, who contacted Mumbai police but were not entertained. We got to know that the three were pushed into Bangladesh when my brother called us from Bangladesh,” said Musarraf, brother of Minarul. “My brother is on his way home. My thanks to our state government for their effort,” added Musarraf.