Bangladesh has expressed hope that there will be no incidents of people being forced across the border following the sweeping election victories of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the key neighbouring states of West Bengal and Assam. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Bangladesh Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said he expects that “no such incident (push backs) will happen” despite rising public debate around illegal immigration after the poll results.
Ahmed confirmed that the Border Guard Bangladesh has been instructed to stay alert along the frontier regions. His remarks follow comments made by Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, who was quoted on the official Facebook page of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party saying that Dhaka would respond if any “push-in” attempts occur amid the political shift in West Bengal.
Context behind border sensitivities
The BJP secured a dominant victory in West Bengal on Monday, while also retaining power in Assam for a third consecutive term. During the campaign, the party frequently accused the government led by Mamata Banerjee of allowing illegal Bangladeshi migration into the state, a charge the ruling party has consistently rejected.
The term “pushback” refers to the practice of forcibly sending individuals believed to be illegal migrants back across international borders. The receiving nation often describes this as a “push in”. Such incidents between India and Bangladesh have historically been reported from select areas along the northeastern frontier.
Amit Shah on Bengal results
Hailing the BJP’s massive win in West Bengal as “historic”, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said people of the state have sent a strong message to infiltrators and their sympathisers, highlighting that parties engaged in the politics of appeasement will not forget this lesson. The BJP on Monday surged past the majority mark in West Bengal, winning 207 seats and leading in four others, to end the 15-year rule of the Trinamool Congress and redraw the state’s political map in saffron hues.
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