In yet another disturbing chapter of India’s discriminatory policies, reports have emerged of large-scale forced deportations of Bengali-speaking Muslims to Bangladesh without due process or trial. Indian and Bangladeshi officials confirm that hundreds—and possibly thousands—of people have been expelled in recent weeks, prompting an outcry from rights activists and civil society.
India’s hardline Hindu nationalist government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has a long history of vilifying migrants from Muslim-majority Bangladesh. Senior officials have used dehumanizing slurs, calling them “termites” and “infiltrators.” This latest crackdown has spread terror among India’s own Muslim minority, particularly those in eastern states who speak Bengali—a language that is widely used in both India and Bangladesh.
The expulsions follow a major security operation launched after the April attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) that killed 26, mainly Hindu tourists. India blamed Pakistan for the attack—a claim Islamabad rejected—leading to a brief but deadly escalation. In the aftermath, Indian authorities conducted mass detentions nationwide, with thousands reportedly swept up in the dragnet.
Eyewitness accounts are harrowing. Rahima Begum, a 50-year-old from Assam, said police detained her for days before forcing her and others into swampy borderlands at night. She recounted being threatened at gunpoint to crawl into Bangladesh. Bangladeshi border guards found them, beat them, and ordered them back. When the group tried to return, they faced gunfire from Indian forces.
Such scenes underscore the cruelty and chaos of India’s approach, which rights activists denounce as “lawless” and an assault on basic human rights. Lawyers point out that deportation without due process violates Indian law, while Bangladesh has refused to accept many of those pushed across—returning hundreds after confirming they were Indian citizens.
The targeting is blatant. Many of those rounded up are poor, low-wage workers in BJP-ruled states. Activists argue this is not about immigration enforcement but an ideological campaign of hate, aimed at marginalizing Muslims and sowing fear among India’s 200 million-strong Muslim community.
India has a history of pushing vulnerable Muslim communities across borders. In the past, it has even been accused of forcing Rohingya refugees onto ships and sending them back to Myanmar’s conflict zones. The latest crackdown in Assam, Gujarat, and Maharashtra reveals the same pattern of abuse—arbitrary arrests, ethnic profiling, and ignoring legal protections.
Bangladesh, encircled on three sides by India, is under pressure but has pushed back. Its border forces have refused to accept people with legitimate Indian documentation, exposing the hollowness of New Delhi’s “illegal migrant” claims.
These forced deportations also come against the backdrop of deteriorating India-Bangladesh relations after a 2024 uprising in Dhaka ousted a government seen as close to India. New Delhi’s increasingly hostile posture risks fueling even deeper instability in South Asia.
The international community must take note of these grave human rights abuses. India cannot claim to be the world’s largest democracy while forcibly expelling its own citizens based on language, religion, and ethnicity. These actions only strengthen calls for accountability and show why regional peace remains hostage to extremist, discriminatory policies in New Delhi.
Pakistan, meanwhile, will continue to stand for justice, human rights, and the dignity of all people oppressed under the guise of security crackdowns and nationalist hate.
