Bangladesh urges India to follow agreed mechanism to send back illegal migrants

Bangladesh has urged India to follow the existing bilateral mechanism for the repatriation of undocumented migrants instead of resorting to “push-ins” across the border, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam said on Monday.

Speaking to reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she said Bangladesh’s border guards were firmly preventing any attempts to push people into the country without following established procedures.

“Our Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is strongly resisting push-ins. We are not allowing them under any circumstances,” she said.

The state minister noted that Bangladesh and India have an established mechanism for the return of citizens who are found to be residing illegally in either country. The process involves verification of nationality and coordinated repatriation through official channels.

“There is a mechanism between Bangladesh and India, as there is between many countries, to return citizens who have entered another country illegally. There is a process for verifying citizenship and arranging their return. Bangladesh follows this mechanism from its side, and India follows it from its side,” she said.

“Any attempt to push people across the border without following that mechanism is not acceptable,” she added.

Shama Obaed said the Foreign Ministry had already sent 12 to 13 diplomatic communications to New Delhi regarding recent incidents.

“We have conveyed our concerns through official channels. The BGB remains vigilant and we are not accepting such actions in any way,” she said.

Referring to recent repatriation efforts, the state minister said Bangladesh had recently brought back 34 citizens from Chennai through the existing legal process.

“There is an established mechanism for the exchange and repatriation of undocumented nationals between the two countries. India should work with us through that mechanism and through diplomacy,” she said.

She added that Bangladesh was pursuing all available diplomatic avenues and formally communicating with Indian authorities whenever reports of push-ins emerged.

“Whenever we receive information or see reports of such incidents, we send letters to the Indian side. We hope the Government of India will take the matter seriously and resolve it through the proper process,” she said.

“Any attempt to carry out repatriation through push-ins rather than established procedures will not be beneficial for us,” she added.

Responding to another question, Shama Obaed said each incident should be assessed separately and cautioned against linking unrelated issues.

“Every case and every event is different. One should not be linked to another. If the Indian government takes this matter seriously, it will become much easier for us to move the bilateral relationship forward,” she said.

mirmostafiz@yahoo.com