West Bengal orders police to hand illegal migrants to BSF for deportation without court

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has directed state police and the Railway Protection Force to hand over certain detained individuals directly to the Border Security Force for deportation, bypassing the usual requirement to present them before a court. The directive, which the chief minister said took effect on May 20, applies specifically to those identified as illegal migrants from Bangladesh who are not eligible for citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Adhikari announced the policy shift following an administrative meeting in Howrah on Thursday. He stated that individuals detained under these circumstances should be provided food and transported directly to BSF border outposts at Petrapole in Bongaon or in Basirhat, rather than being sent through the judicial system. The chief minister also instructed that a weekly report on such detainees be submitted to his office through the state's Director General of Police.

The move is described by the chief minister as implementing a central government directive and aligning with a broader "detect, delete and deport" framework for addressing illegal immigration. He referenced a new rule, reportedly stemming from...