Suvendu Adhikari has called for the release of Bangladeshi Hindus lodged in correctional homes in West Bengal’s Uttar Dinajpur district, saying legal procedures should be initiated for those who crossed into India claiming refuge from attacks. He made the statement at a public rally in Raiganj on Thursday and assigned state Law Minister Biraj Biswas to examine the matter.
Adhikari said the individuals had left their homes and entered India to protect their lives and religion. The report does not provide details of the cases under which they were lodged in correctional homes, the number of people involved, or any court orders governing their detention or release.
According to the report, Adhikari asked the administration to examine the issue without delay and said Biswas would take the necessary legal steps. Any release would therefore depend on the applicable legal process and the status of each individual case. The statement, as reported, was a political appeal and does not itself establish that the people concerned are legally eligible for release.
The issue was linked at the rally to citizenship applications under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. Adhikari said around 9,000 applications had been submitted and expressed hope that the process would be completed by November 30. He also said eligible refugees would receive Indian citizenship under the law. The report does not specify whether the 9,000 applications relate only to Uttar Dinajpur or to a wider area, nor does it give details of the applications’ current status.
Quoting Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Adhikari said he had been assigned responsibility for issuing citizenship certificates. He further said applicants belonging to Scheduled Castes would receive caste certificates and that eligible applicants would be enrolled on the electoral rolls in January 2027. These timelines and administrative steps were presented in Adhikari’s remarks; no separate government notification or official application data is cited in the supplied report.
Uttar Dinajpur’s location near the India-Bangladesh border also shaped the speech. Adhikari said the Border Security Force and police would work together and appealed to residents to cooperate with security agencies. He distinguished between refugees who may qualify for citizenship under applicable provisions and what he described as infiltrators, saying the latter would be placed in holding centres and returned to Bangladesh.
Adhikari also made broader remarks about border security, religious festivals, madrasas and alleged activities linked to Jamaat in Bangladesh. Those assertions were made at the rally and are not independently established in the supplied report. The immediate administrative question remains whether the law minister, district administration and courts will take up the cases of the people held in correctional homes, and what procedure will govern any release.
