Wrongly held as B’deshis by Delhi cops, 7 Dinhata migrant workers return home

Cooch Behar: Seven residents of Dinhata, formerly from enclave areas, have returned home after being wrongly detained by Delhi Police on suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals. The arrests, made on June 25, triggered concern in their village and drew attention from local leaders and media.

The men, all daily wage labourers, had gone to Delhi to work at a brick kiln. According to them, they were detained solely for speaking Bengali—even after showing valid identity documents.

One of the workers, Mohammad Samsul Haque, shared his experience: “I had gone to see a doctor when I heard our people were taken by police. I rushed back and saw it was true. Later, we were also called in and detained. We showed our documents, but they kept us at a camp meant for suspected Bangladeshis. Only after our residential certificates were sent from home were we released.”

The incident caused unrest in their native village. Local leaders, state representatives, and concerned citizens quickly intervened, helping verify their identity and secure their release after five days. Upon their return on Sunday, the men thanked the local administration, media and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee

for the support.

Haque appealed to the government to prevent such incidents in the future. “We are poor laborers trying to earn a living. We urge the government to ensure we’re not treated this way again.”