Fourteen Bengali Muslims from Odisha were allegedly forcibly pushed into Bangladesh by the Border Security Force (BSF), according to claims made by their families. The incident reportedly occurred on December 26, 2025, at the Gede border in West Bengal’s Nadia district.
Families of the affected individuals, including Sheikh Jabbar—one of the victims—assert that their kin have been residents of Odisha for nearly seven decades and are registered voters in the state. They provided various forms of identification, including Aadhaar cards, voter ID cards, ration cards, and historical land records.
“Despite our valid documents, they were labeled as Bangladeshis,” Saiful Ali Khan, a relative of one of the victims, told Maktoob. The family further alleged that local police vandalized their properties and detained the 14 individuals before handing them over to the BSF, leading to their expulsion across the border.
The group comprises four children, five women, and five men, including Gulshan Bibi (90) and Sheikh Jabbar (70), along with Jabbar’s four sons: Sheikh Hakim (45), Sheikh Ukil (40), Sheikh Raja (38), and Sheikh Banti (28). The group also contains Sheikh Ukil’s 11-year-old daughter, Shakila Khatun, and Sheikh Raja’s three children: Nasrin Parveen (12), Sheikh Touhid (11), and Sheikh Rahid (2), along with other relatives from Ambika village in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district.
Khan noted that the family had been detained for approximately one-and-a-half months based on allegations of being “Bangladeshi.” He expressed frustration at the police’s refusal to acknowledge their documents and noted that they faced intimidation when they sought information about their detained family members.
Another relative, Sheikh Akram, revealed that they learned about the expulsion through media reports. “We found out that they were pushed into Bangladesh on December 26,” he stated, deeming the action an illegal pushback by the Odisha administration and the BSF.
Alam, another family member, added that Jabbar’s ancestors migrated from Namkhana in South 24 Parganas district, West Bengal, to Odisha for work around 70 years ago. Families assert that all their documents were issued in Odisha, and their younger generations have been born there.
The family reported having no means of contacting the detained members and stated that the authorities have provided no support. “We don’t know what to do,” Alam said, highlighting their deep concern over the situation.
The pushback was confirmed by Lieutenant Colonel Md Nazmul Hasan, commanding officer of Bangladesh’s 6 BGB Chuadanga Battalion. He stated that on the night of December 26, the BSF exploited dense fog to open the Darshana Nimtala border gate and expel the 14 individuals, all of whom he affirmed are non-Bangladeshis with no connections in Bangladesh. He noted that previous attempts to push them back through the Kushtia border had failed on December 23.
In response to the incident, Subhankar Sarkar, president of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee, expressed serious concern. In a letter to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi, he warned of a troubling trend of violence against Bengali-speaking migrant workers, particularly in states governed by the BJP. Sarkar referenced this pushback and a violent incident involving a Bengali-speaking migrant worker, Jewel Rana, in Odisha.
He criticized both the Central and West Bengal governments for their inaction and urged Congress leadership to advocate for protective measures for those affected in Odisha and other states, including Assam, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Gujarat.
The Indian Justice Forum, a human rights organization, labeled the event a “gross violation of the Constitution.” Advocate Asfak Ahammed, the forum’s chairman, criticized the treatment of the individuals involved, asserting that they were unjustly labeled and expelled as a result of their Muslim identity. He emphasized that valid citizens of India should not be forcibly returned to another country and indicated plans to approach the Odisha High Court if necessary action is not taken by authorities.
Tags: BSF illegally pushed 14 Bengali-speaking Muslims from Odisha into Bangladesh, families allege Extract 5 SEO-friendly keywords as tags. Output only keywords, comma separated.
Hashtags: #BSF #illegally #pushed #Bengalispeaking #Muslims #Odisha #Bangladesh #families #allege
