A recent statement by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma threatening to deport suspected "foreigners" using a colonial-era law has triggered concern in Bangladesh over potential push-in at the border.
Speaking in the Assam Assembly, Sarma said the state will invoke the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950, to bypass Foreigners’ Tribunals and empower district administrations to expel individuals deemed illegal immigrants.
The move follows a Supreme Court ruling last year affirming the law’s validity alongside Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, which recognizes pre-1971 migrants.
“This Act now allows Deputy Commissioners to act decisively. We can directly push back infiltrators without long legal delays,” said Sarma, hinting that individuals identified as foreigners could be forcibly returned.
The 1950 Act was introduced in post-Partition India to manage population influx from East Pakistan, now Bangladesh. However, critics say its revival risks targeting Indian citizens, especially Bengali-speaking Muslims, under the guise of expelling undocumented migrants.
India’s All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) slammed the announcement, accusing the government of communal profiling. “This will be used to harass Indian Muslims and label them as foreigners without due process,” the party warned in a memorandum to Assam’s governor.
In Dhaka, officials have yet to formally respond, but the development is being closely monitored. Analysts warn that any attempt to push individuals across the border without verification could strain diplomatic ties between Bangladesh and India.
“It is a sensitive issue. Bangladesh cannot be expected to accept people declared foreigners by India without credible proof of their citizenship,” said one diplomatic source.
The surge in cross-border "push-ins" has been reported across 18 border districts, including Khagrachhari, Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, Dinajpur, and Habiganj, raising concerns over a mounting humanitarian and diplomatic crisis. The first such incident was recorded on 7 May, and by 31 May, a total of 1,143 individuals had reportedly been pushed into Bangladesh.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Dhaka is said to have raised the matter multiple times through diplomatic channels, but the issue remains unaddressed by New Delhi.
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