35 years after he entered India and raised a family, Bangladeshi man jailed in Odisha

As Odisha expedited the process of identifying and deporting Bangladeshi nationals, a man who allegedly entered India illegally about 35 years ago and has since built a life with his wife and four children, now finds himself at the crossroads of legal uncertainty following his arrest and subsequent court proceedings.

Abu Sahik, 53, has been languishing in Aska jail in Odisha’s Ganjam district for months. His counsels have argued for his freedom on the ground that the provisions of Article 21 are applicable to a person already in India and he would be entitled to claim compliance of the principles of natural justice.

Mr. Sahik was among 10 Bangladeshis arrested by the police from Bhubaneswar station on September 3, 2025. After the local courts rejected his bail plea, he moved the Orissa High Court which has sought a report from the State government.

According to the investigation by Deputy Superintendent of Polie, Ganjam, the man had entered India from Bangladesh without any valid document in 1991. After a brief stay in West Bengal, he came to Aska area along with three friends and started earning a livelihood by repairing umbrellas.

In 2001, Mr. Sahik got married and had four children. He obtained a voter card in 2008 and also got an Aadhaar card and a PAN card in his name, besides a ration card for his wife. In 2019, the man applied for an Indian passport at the local post office with a forged document mentioning his birthplace as Aska. After the passport was issued, the Regional Passport Office in Bhubaneswar raised objections and sought an explanation on the documents provided.

Mr. Sahik’s counsel Bibhu Prasad Tripathy said his client deserved bail. “It is a settled principle that law does not authorise or permit any discrimination between a foreign national and Indian national in the matter of granting of bail and the same has to be considered on the facts and circumstances of each case,” he said.

“The court can impose different conditions which may be necessary to ensure that the accused will be available for facing trial, but it cannot be said that the accused will not be granted bail because of being a foreign national,” he said.

Mr. Tripathy contended that “deportation process is an administrative exercise which will take independent course… but he (Mr. Sahik) has every right to face trial and cannot fight battle remaining in jail.”  The matter is listed to March 2, 2026 for hearing in the Orissa High Court.

In 2024, the Odisha government directed all district administrations to carry out a comprehensive identification drive to trace Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in the State. Officials were instructed to form joint teams comprising personnel from block offices, tehsils, and police stations to identify “illegal immigrants” following the unrest in Bangladesh.

In a reply tabled in the Assembly, the government had earlier said that 3,740 Bangladeshi nationals were found to be living illegally in the State.