The Indian Border Security Force (BSF) has pushed 21 Rohingya nationals into Bangladesh through the Nakugaon border in Nalitabari upazila of Sherpur district late Thursday night.
The group includes five adult men, five adult women, and eleven minors. According to Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), the incident occurred around 1:15am on the night of July 24, near Main Pillar 1116 under the Hatipagar BGB camp jurisdiction. The BSF personnel from Kilapara camp in India carried out the push-in operation.
Soon after, a BGB patrol team detained the Rohingyas and temporarily housed them at the local Muktijoddha High School.
The individuals have been identified as: Sabbir (40), Shamsul Alam (43), Romana Begum (24), Toha (9), Nurtajol (4), Riaz (4), Arman (1), Robi Khanam (24), Hasina Begum (22), Shahina Akter (3), Shuktara (4 months), Setara Begum (35), Borhan (8), Hatema Begum (40), Nurul Absar (17), Jinnatara (15), Nurul Islam (13), Siraj (11), Azizul Osman (9), Ayesha Bibi (6), and one speech-impaired individual whose name could not be confirmed.
According to BGB sources, the detainees belong to six families. They reportedly fled from the Balukhali Rohingya refugee camp in Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, in 2017 and illegally entered Jammu and Kashmir in India. There, they worked as laborers in hotels and households. About a month ago, Indian police arrested them during a crackdown on undocumented migrants. During interrogation, they claimed to be Rohingya refugees from the Ukhiya camp in Bangladesh. Based on this, Indian authorities handed them over to the BSF, who subsequently pushed them into Bangladesh.
Confirming the incident, Lieutenant Colonel Mehedi Hasan, Commanding Officer of BGB Battalion 39, said the identities of the detainees are being verified and further steps will be taken accordingly.
Officer-in-Charge of Nalitabari Police Station, Sohel Rana, also acknowledged awareness of the matter but stated that BGB has not yet handed the individuals over to the police.