Two Bengali families, including an eight-month pregnant woman who was separated from her four-year-old daughter, were arbitrarily expelled from India to Bangladesh on June 26. The pregnant woman, Sunali Bibi, her husband Danish Sheikh, and their eight-year-old son were deported, leaving their younger daughter behind in West Bengal’s Birbhum district.
Another woman, Sweety Bibi, and her two children were also deported along with Sunali’s family. The families maintain that they are Indian citizens and have since filed a habeas corpus petition in the Calcutta High Court to challenge the deportation.
Rights groups have strongly condemned the actions of the authorities, accusing them of bypassing legal due process and targeting Bengali-speaking Indian citizens. In contrast, the Delhi Police claim that the families admitted to being Bangladeshi nationals and were unable to produce any valid Indian citizenship documents. The case is currently pending in court.
