A major political and legal debate has erupted in West Bengal after the state’s BJP-led government announced a new mechanism under which certain detained Bangladeshi migrants would allegedly be handed directly to the Border Security Force (BSF) for deportation instead of being produced before courts through the conventional legal process.
According to reports, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Thursday that the directive had already come into force from May 20 and had been communicated to both the state police and the Railway Protection Force (RPF).
Under the newly announced system, individuals identified as illegal Bangladeshi migrants and found ineligible for citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) would reportedly be transferred directly to BSF border outposts for deportation instead of first being presented before a court.
The move forms part of what Suvendu Adhikari described as Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s broader “detect, delete and deport” framework aimed at dealing with what the BJP describes as illegal Bangladeshi infiltration into India.
The announcement represents a significant departure from the legal and administrative process traditionally followed in cases involving foreign nationals accused of entering India without valid documents or overstaying visas.
Back in 2016, former Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju had stated in Parliament that approximately 20 million illegal immigrants from Bangladesh were believed to be living in India. Successive BJP leaders have repeatedly described illegal immigration as a threat to national security and demographic balance.
The latest directive comes amid an increasingly aggressive political campaign by the BJP government against illegal immigration from Bangladesh, particularly in eastern Indian states.
The BJP had frequently accused the earlier All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) government led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of ignoring illegal infiltration for electoral and vote-bank considerations, allegations that the TMC consistently denied.
Cracking down on alleged infiltrators and strengthening border security became one of the BJP’s central political themes during the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, which eventually brought the party to power in the state.
A similar approach has also emerged in neighbouring Assam under Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. In recent months, Sarma has publicly defended what he called a “pushback” strategy involving the deportation of individuals declared foreigners instead of keeping them indefinitely in detention centres.
When criticism and diplomatic concerns arose over Assam’s actions, Himanta Biswa Sarma cited provisions of the Immigrants Expulsion from Assam Act 1950 and referenced Supreme Court observations to argue that district authorities possess powers to act against illegal immigrants without necessarily waiting for lengthy Foreigners’ Tribunal proceedings in every case.
Reports have suggested that Assam authorities have already pushed back hundreds of individuals across the border, although the exercise has also generated court petitions and concerns regarding due process and legality.
Political observers also noted the symbolic alignment between the BJP governments in Assam and West Bengal. Shortly after Himanta Biswa Sarma’s oath-taking ceremony in Guwahati, following Suvendu Adhikari’s swearing-in in Kolkata, the Assam Chief Minister shared a cryptic social media post stating “Bad days for (You know who),” which was widely interpreted as referring to illegal infiltrators and the BJP’s anti-immigration agenda.
Speaking to reporters in Howrah on Thursday, Suvendu Adhikari elaborated on the new instructions issued to police and the RPF.
According to Adhikari, officials had been clearly instructed that if Bangladeshi migrants not eligible for citizenship under the CAA are detained at places such as railway stations, including Howrah Station, they should not be sent to courts.
Instead, he stated that the detainees should be properly fed and then directly transported to BSF personnel stationed at border locations, including the Petrapole border crossing in Bongaon or border outposts located in Basirhat in North 24 Parganas district.
Adhikari also reportedly instructed that weekly reports concerning such detainees should be submitted to the Chief Minister’s Office through the Director General of Police.
While announcing the policy, Adhikari did not specifically clarify the precise legal provision under which the state government intends to bypass normal judicial procedures.
However, reports suggested that he may have been referring to the Immigration and Foreigners Act 2025, legislation passed by Parliament in April 2025 that seeks to establish an updated framework for immigration management, surveillance, detention and deportation procedures.
According to Adhikari, the new rules now permit infiltrators to be handed over directly to BSF border posts rather than being routed through courts.
Earlier this week, the Chief Minister also stated that the Central government had formally communicated instructions to the Bengal government regarding the identification and deportation of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.
However, the most significant controversy surrounding the announcement concerns the legal question of whether police authorities can independently determine someone’s immigration status and directly transfer them to the BSF without judicial review.
According to reports, several senior police officials privately expressed concerns regarding the legality of bypassing courts in such cases. One senior officer reportedly pointed out that under normal procedure, Bangladeshi nationals accused of illegal entry or overstaying are booked under provisions of the Foreigners Act 1946 and produced before a court, which then determines their legal status.
The officer reportedly questioned who would decide whether an individual had entered India illegally or overstayed beyond permitted limits, arguing that such determinations should rest with courts rather than solely with law-enforcement agencies.
Section 14(A) of the Foreigners Act prescribes punishment for unauthorised entry into protected or restricted areas and carries penalties ranging from imprisonment to monetary fines.
Nevertheless, supporters of the new policy argue that the conventional legal route often leads to years of prolonged proceedings while illegal migrants continue residing in India.
The deportation directive is also part of a broader series of policy actions undertaken by the new BJP government in West Bengal during its initial months in office. These measures have included handing over land to the BSF for border fencing projects, conducting statewide anti-encroachment demolition drives, introducing stricter qurbani-related rules before Eid and making the singing of “Vande Mataram” mandatory in educational institutions, including madrasas.
Together, these policies indicate a government determined to emphasise border security, law enforcement and cultural assertion as defining features of its governance agenda.
While the legal validity of the deportation mechanism may eventually face judicial scrutiny, the BJP-led governments in both West Bengal and Assam appear firmly committed to accelerating efforts aimed at identifying, detaining and deporting what they describe as illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators rather than allowing such cases to remain tied up in prolonged legal proceedings.
