New Delhi: The BJP government in West Bengal has directed all 23 districts in the state to establish holding centres for detained illegal immigrants, marking the first major enforcement step after the party came to power in the state.
The order followed Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s recent announcement of a “detect, delete and deport” policy targeting alleged illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya immigrants. Deportation of Bangladeshis and Rohingyas formed a major part of the BJP’s election campaign during the West Bengal Assembly polls.
A notification issued by the Home and Hill Affairs Department instructed district magistrates to follow Union Home Ministry guidelines regarding detention and deportation procedures for Bangladeshis and Rohingyas accused of staying in India illegally.
According to the order, every district must establish centres for two categories of detainees. These include foreign nationals apprehended by authorities and prisoners who completed jail terms and are awaiting deportation or repatriation.
The move places West Bengal alongside Assam, another BJP ruled state where detention and transit facilities for alleged illegal immigrants already operate.
The Union Home Ministry guidelines issued earlier directed states and Union Territories to create district level task forces under police supervision for identifying and deporting undocumented immigrants. The guidelines also instructed authorities to collect biometric data and demographic details of those detained.
The BJP government has repeatedly used the term “infiltrators” while referring to undocumented Bangladeshis and Rohingyas in the state. Rights groups and Muslim organisations have earlier raised concerns over profiling and targeting of vulnerable communities during such drives.
