Labourer returns home after spending 15 months in Bangladesh jail

Nasir Sheikh had crossed border in search of work and was working on a field on the Indo-Bangladesh border when he was arrested by Bangladesh Rifles.

Nadia: A labourer, who was arrested by Bangladesh Rifles and then imprisoned for entering the neighbouring country without passport and visa, returned home after 15 months.

Nasir Sheikh, aged 52 years, is a resident of the Brahmanagar area of the Chhapra police station in West Bengal's Nadia district. He is a daily labourer and crossed the border in search of work. He was arrested while working on an agricultural field in the Brahmanagar Anandabas area on the Indo-Bangladesh border. After arresting him, he was produced before the court in Bangladesh and sentenced to imprisonment for entering the country illegally. Finally, he was released following the initiative of the Indian government.

"I went to work as a daily labourer on Brahmanagar border. A while later, Bangladesh Rifles personnel arrested me. They took me to the local police station in Bangladesh and then to the court. The court sentenced me to two-months imprisonment and since then I had been lodged in the jail," Sheikh told ETV Bharat.

After learning about the incident, the High Commission of India contacted its Bangladesh counterpart. Discussions were held between the India and Bangladesh governments and a call was taken for his return to India.

Sheikh is happy to return home after 15 months while his family is overwhelmed to see him after so many months. His elder brother Siraj Sheikh said, "We are happy that he is back home. Many people cross the border in search of work and get engaged as day labourers. Nasir too did the same."