The West Bengal government has begun setting up dedicated “holding centres” to detain illegal Bangladeshi immigrants and Rohingyas before deportation, with at least 12 suspected infiltrators already lodged in facilities in Malda and Murshidabad districts.
Officials said Malda became the first district in the state to operationalise a holding centre under the new BJP government led by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. The facility has been established at Chandan Park in English Bazar and is currently housing nine suspected Bangladeshi nationals.
According to officials, the detainees include three women and six minors who were brought from the Pandua area of Gazole under heavy security arrangements.
A senior police officer said another holding centre has also become operational in Murshidabad district. The facility has been set up on the third floor of Padma Bhavan near the Bahadurpur panchayat office.
Three suspected Bangladeshi nationals are currently lodged at the Murshidabad centre. Officials said the trio had allegedly crossed the international border illegally and were staying in the Lalgola area before being arrested on Sunday. Their details have already been forwarded to the state home department.
The development comes after the West Bengal government directed all District Magistrates to establish holding centres for illegal foreigners and foreign-origin prisoners released from jails but awaiting deportation or repatriation.
Government directives reportedly state that the move is being implemented in line with guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The instructions specifically mention illegal Bangladeshi nationals and Rohingyas staying in India without valid documentation.
The BJP government in West Bengal has repeatedly stated that it intends to adopt a stricter approach towards illegal infiltration along the India-Bangladesh border.
Meanwhile, the state’s anti-infiltration drive has reportedly triggered a reverse movement near border areas. Reports suggest that several alleged Bangladeshi infiltrators gathered near the Hakimpur checkpoint in North 24 Parganas seeking to return to Bangladesh.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday urged authorities to speed up the deportation process. Speaking after an administrative meeting, he claimed that many of those gathered near the border were willing to return to Bangladesh voluntarily.
“We do not want to feed them in jails or waste public money on them. This harms Indians, especially people of West Bengal. The law existed earlier but was not properly used because of vote-bank politics. We will implement it in the interest of the country and the state,” Adhikari said.
The chief minister had earlier announced that suspected Bangladeshi infiltrators detained in the state would now be directly handed over to the Border Security Force (BSF) for deportation instead of being routinely produced before courts under the newly implemented mechanism.
