The Supreme Court seeks responses from the Centre and West Bengal on the indefinite detention of Bangladeshi nationals.
The Supreme Court has raised concerns over the prolonged detention of Bangladeshi nationals in West Bengal’s correctional homes even after completing their sentences. On January 30, a bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan sought explanations from the Centre and the West Bengal government regarding the delay in deportation and the legal basis for indefinite detention.
2/6/20251 min read
The case stems from a 2011 PIL by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), highlighting bureaucratic delays in nationality verification and repatriation. The Court questioned why verification isn’t completed before a convict’s release and why a 2009 Home Ministry directive requiring verification within 30 days is not followed.
It also scrutinized West Bengal’s policy of detaining foreign convicts under the “Jaankhalash” category, deeming it a violation of Article 21. The Court directed both governments to provide updated figures on detainees and submit a detailed affidavit before the next hearing on February 6.