Six months after forced deportation, pregnant woman and son finally return to India

Nearly six months after she was forcibly pushed into Bangladesh on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant, 25-year-old Sunali Khatun — now heavily pregnant — returned to India on December 5 with her eight-year-old son following the intervention of the Supreme Court.

The mother and child crossed into India through the Mehadipur border outpost in West Bengal’s Malda district after a flag meeting between the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Bangladesh Border Guard (BGB), officials confirmed.

Sunali, her husband Danish Sheikh, their son, and another woman — 32-year-old Sweety Bibi — along with her two children, all residents of Birbhum district in West Bengal, were detained by Delhi Police in June. After nearly a week in custody, all six were pushed across the India–Bangladesh border on June 26, despite their claims of Indian citizenship.

While Sunali and her son have now been brought back, Danish, Sweety and her children remain in Bangladesh as the Centre continues to contest their citizenship status. The government agreed to facilitate Sunali’s return solely on “humanitarian grounds,” officials said.

The two families were arrested in Bangladesh on August 21 under provisions of the Passport Act and Foreigners Act. They were granted bail on December 1 by a district court in Chapainawabganj.

Pending further legal resolution, they were permitted to stay with a relative — Faruk Sheikh — in Bangladesh.

Speaking from the border, Mofizul Islam, a Birbhum-based social worker who accompanied the return, described the moment as a breakthrough after months of uncertainty.
“After months of legal battle, we have finally secured the return of Sunali and her son. But our fight isn’t over — her husband and the other two children are still across the border. We will not rest till they return,” he said.

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP and chairman of the West Bengal Migrant Labourers Welfare Board, Samirul Islam, posted on X that the episode would be remembered as a “historic reminder of the torture inflicted on poor Bengalis.”

He alleged that despite clear directions from the Supreme Court, the Centre failed to act promptly, forcing petitioners to repeatedly approach the court.

Legal orders in both countries had already recognized the family as Indian. On October 3, a magistrate court in Chapainawabganj declared them Indian citizens on the basis of Aadhaar details and residential proof, and ordered they be repatriated.

Earlier, on September 26, the Calcutta High Court had directed authorities to ensure their return within four weeks.

Shortly after crossing back on December 5, Sunali and her son were taken into custody by West Bengal Police and admitted to Malda Medical College Hospital for examination and monitoring.

“We are following the Supreme Court’s directives,” said Sudipto Bhaduri, Chief Medical Officer of Health at the hospital.

“She is stable but suffering from blood deficiency. A medical team has been formed to monitor her condition for at least 24 hours before further steps are taken.”

As Sunali recovers under watch, her case stands as a stark example of the human cost of bureaucratic gaps, disputed documentation and contested citizenship in border states — a legal battleground now intertwined with identity, belonging and survival.