Ex-Govt Teacher 'Pushed' Into Bangladesh Despite Supreme Court Case, Alleges Family (image-X/AbdulHai1975)
Assam: The family of 51-year-old Khairul Islam, a former government school teacher from Assam’s Morigaon district, has claimed he was picked up from their home and forcibly “pushed” across the Indo-Bangladesh border by Indian security forces – even as his citizenship appeal remains pending in the Supreme Court.
According to the family, they learned of Islam’s deportation on May 27 after a video surfaced on social media, purportedly showing him in Bangladesh’s Kurigram district near the Boraibari border.
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In the video, Islam identified himself and alleged that he was taken by police to the Matia detention centre on May 23 and deported in the early hours of May 27 along with 13 others, with his hands tied.
Islam had been declared a foreigner by a Foreigners Tribunal in 2016. The Gauhati High Court upheld this verdict in 2018, leading to his two-year detention at Tezpur Central Jail. After a Supreme Court directive in 2020 to release long-term detainees, Islam was released on bail and had since been pursuing a Special Leave Petition in the apex court. His petition, along with those of his three similarly affected siblings, is part of a batch of citizenship cases now under Supreme Court consideration.
Notably, a Supreme Court bench in October 2023 had passed interim orders that no coercive action be taken against his siblings, noting Islam’s earlier release. The last hearing in December 2024 reaffirmed that the matter was sub judice and ordered the case be expedited.
While the BSF has not directly addressed Islam’s case, it did state on May 28 reporting it had “thwarted an infiltration attempt by a large group of Bangladeshi nationals” along Assam’s South Salmara-Mankachar border on May 27. The force said a mob from Bangladesh tried to enter India and retreated after being challenged by BSF personnel.
On May 28, a delegation of 11 All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) leaders submitted a memorandum to Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya, condemning the alleged “inhuman treatment through pushbacks.” Mankachar MLA Aminul Islam claimed that 14 people, including Khairul Islam, were pushed into the no-man’s land between India and Bangladesh, with neither country accepting them.
“This is a violation of human rights and legal due process,” he said.
The Family’s Account
Islam’s wife, Rita Khanam, recounted the night of May 23 when police took him away, allegedly for “some reports.” She said they later learned he was moved to the Matia detention camp but had no knowledge of the deportation until the video emerged, reprted Indian Express.
Islam, a former teacher at Thengsali Khandapukhuri Lower Primary School, had not been reinstated in service following his detention, though his final legal status remains undecided.
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The video of Islam’s alleged deportation emerged amid heightened tensions between the BSF and Border Guard Bangladesh in the Kurigram-Mankachar region. Reports suggest a standoff, with Bangladesh refusing to accept the individuals pushed across, resulting in their confinement in the no-man’s land.
The Supreme Court, in its December 2024 order, had granted leave and expedited hearing of the batch of SLPs involving Islam and others. The matter continues to be under judicial scrutiny, and the court has maintained its earlier interim orders.
