Following the release of 19 migrant workers from West Bengal's Murshidabad, details emerge about their detention, verification process, and citizenship concerns.
On Friday, nineteen out of twenty-three migrant workers from West Bengal's Murshidabad, who were detained in Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh earlier this month on suspicions of being undocumented Bangladeshi citizens, were released. The police had alleged that the men failed to appear with their documents despite multiple summonses. However, their families claimed they were detained late at night despite having voter cards, Aadhaar cards, and PAN cards.
The detention took place on September 4 from their residences in Chunchiapara-Ganesh Nagar under Sirgiti police station. The men hail from Murshidabad’s Samserganj and Sahabad.
According to Bilaspur Senior Superintendent of Police Rajnesh Singh, these nineteen individuals were released following verification of their names in voter lists, local administration records, family details, and permanent residence documents. The fate of the remaining four is yet to be determined, as further steps will depend on the reports received.
The police claimed that their names had been struck off voter lists during a special intensive revision exercise in West Bengal.
After the 23 men were detained, the Chhattisgarh unit of the People’s Union of Civil Liberties alleged that the action was taken without them getting any show-cause notices. The organisation claimed that the men were also not given time to substantiate their document credentials.
In May 2025, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs directed the states and Union Territories to verify the credentials of persons suspected to be undocumented migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Source:
Scroll.in
