By: Hafizur Rahman
July 25, 2025
In a concerning repeat of cross-border expulsions, India’s Border Security Force (BSF) has forcibly pushed 21 Rohingya men, women, and children into Bangladesh through the Nakugaon border point in Sherpur’s Nalitabari Upazila, according to Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) officials.
The group—consisting of five men, five women, and eleven children from six Rohingya families—was intercepted by BGB near border pillar 1,116 on the night of July 24. They are currently being held at a government primary school while authorities verify their identities and assess possible next steps.
Lt Col Mehedi Hasan, commanding officer of BGB Battalion 39 in Mymensingh, confirmed the pushback and said that coordination is ongoing with relevant agencies to determine appropriate action.
Initial information suggests the group originally fled from the Balukhali refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar and had been living in Jammu and Kashmir, India. There, they reportedly worked in hotels and homes as low-wage laborers. Around a month ago, Indian police detained them for alleged illegal entry. Instead of following legal repatriation procedures or involving UN agencies, the detainees were handed over to BSF, who then pushed them across the Bangladesh border.
“We had no choice,” said one of the fathers. “We were arrested in Jammu and told we would be deported. The next thing we knew, we were being pushed into a forest near the border at night.”
This latest incident echoes a previous pushback on July 11, when BSF expelled another group of ten Rohingya, including women and children, through the Panihata border in Nalitabari.
Rights observers and refugee advocates have condemned India’s handling of Rohingya refugees, citing the lack of due process, humanitarian safeguards, or coordination with international organizations such as UNHCR.
“These cross-border expulsions not only violate international law but also put stateless Rohingya—already fleeing persecution—at further risk,” said a human rights monitor based in Dhaka. “They are being shuffled across borders like human cargo.”
Bangladesh, already hosting over a million Rohingya refugees, has called for international attention to India’s increasing deportations. With no formal repatriation agreement in place between India and Bangladesh regarding Rohingya, such incidents raise urgent legal and humanitarian questions.
