Sunali Khatun, a 26-year-old migrant worker from Birbhum, has returned to India after spending more than 100 days in a solitary cell inside a Bangladeshi prison. Wrongfully deported earlier this year on suspicion of being a Bangladeshi national, she is now in the final stage of pregnancy and back home after the Supreme Court ordered her repatriation on humanitarian grounds.
Khatun was held at the Chapai Nawabgunj correctional facility, charged as an &ldquo;infiltrator&rdquo;. Repatriated through the Malda border along with her minor son Sabir, she now fears for her husband, Danish, who was separated from her and remains unaccounted for. She also expressed concern for co-deportee Sweety Bibi and her children, who are still awaiting return despite securing bail in Bangladesh.
Arrested by Delhi Police in June on suspicion of illegal entry, Khatun and three members of another family were later detained by Bangladesh authorities under the Control of Entry Act. While her son stayed with her in jail, her six-year-old daughter Afreen avoided deportation because she was living with her grandparents at the time of the arrests.
Khatun is currently under medical supervision at Rampurhat Government Medical College and Hospital until her delivery. Her return was facilitated after both nations&rsquo; border forces completed the required legal formalities.
She expressed gratitude to West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for ensuring her return, a case that triggered intense political debate ahead of the 2026 state elections. The Trinamool Congress accused the BJP of acting against Bengali migrant workers. At the same time, TMC MP Samirul Islam called her repatriation a landmark moment that revealed the suffering endured by poor residents wrongly deported.
The case reached the Supreme Court after the Calcutta High Court twice ordered the Indian government to bring back all six deported individuals and allow them to prove their citizenship. The families, originally from Birbhum, had travelled to Delhi in search of work before being detained on June 24 and pushed across the border two days later. Their relatives later approached the High Court, setting off the legal battle that finally brought Khatun back home.

Pregnant migrant worker recounts torture in Bangladesh jail after wrongful deportation

Sunali Khatun Returns Home After Ordeal

Pregnant migrant worker recounts torture in Bangladesh jail after wrongful deportation

December 7, 2025 | 17:21 IST