India is bringing back Sunali Khatun after months in Bangladesh: Why a pregnant woman was deported and why Supreme Court intervened

File image used for representational purpose.

The Supreme Court has directed the Union government to bring back Sunali Khatun, a pregnant woman who was deported to Bangladesh earlier this year despite claims that she is an Indian citizen from West Bengal. The order came after the Centre informed the bench that it was willing to repatriate her “on humanitarian grounds.” Khatun’s eight-year-old son, who was deported with her, will also be brought back.

A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymala Bagchi instructed authorities to provide medical care to Khatun at no cost when she returns and to ensure proper arrangements for her child. Kant said the state must on occasion “bend in humanitarian interest.”

How the case began

The case started when Khatun’s father, Bodu Sheikh, filed a habeas corpus petition before the Calcutta High Court. Sheikh said he had lived in Delhi for decades and insisted he was an Indian citizen. He told the court that his daughter and her family were picked up by Delhi Police during an identity verification drive in June from the KN Katju Marg police station.

Khatun, her husband Danish and their eight-year-old son had been living in Delhi for nearly twenty years while working as ragpickers. Despite showing Aadhaar and voter identity cards, authorities declared them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and handed them over to the Border Security Force. Sheikh alleged that his daughter was blindfolded and that the family was pushed into Bangladesh “during the dead of night” on June 26. He said they were threatened with being shot if they tried to return.

Along with Khatun’s family, her friend Sweety Bibi and Bibi’s children Kurban and Iman were also deported. In August, Bangladeshi authorities arrested Sunali and her family under the Passport Act and the Foreigners Act.

High Court orders repatriation

In September, a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court voided the deportation and ordered the Centre to bring back both families within a month. The court said, “Acting in hot haste to deport them is a clear violation which renders the deportation order bad in law, and liable to be set aside.” The order was passed by Justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Ritabrata Kumar Mitra.

The Centre challenged the ruling in the Supreme Court, arguing that the Calcutta High Court had no jurisdiction because the arrest and deportation took place in Delhi.

Bangladesh court confirms citizenship

Meanwhile, in October, a court in Chapainawabganj, Bangladesh, ruled that Khatun and her family were Indian citizens. The order said, “It has been found that all accused persons are Indian Aadhaar card holder citizens… In this situation, for the matter of legal push back to India and for other official formalities, it is necessary to inform the Indian High Commission in Dhaka.”

Khatun found temporary shelter in Rajshahi with help from locals. Her family in West Bengal said she was struggling with stress and malnutrition. Her father told The Wire, “I have been in Delhi for 30 years. I never imagined something like this would happen.” Her mother, Jyotsna Bibi, said, “What crime has Sunali committed? Ask around the area. If anyone says we are Bangladeshi, we will leave the village today.”

Her sister Karishma told the Indian Express that Khatun’s young daughter has been devastated. “Sunali’s daughter cries for her every night. It has been months since she saw her mother, father and brother,” she said.

Khatun’s lawyer has submitted that both Bodu Sheikh and Jyotsna Bibi appear in the 2002 Bengal voter list, which further supports their claim of citizenship.

Supreme Court’s directions

Justice Joymala Bagchi noted that under the Citizenship Act, if Bodu Sheikh is an undisputed Indian citizen and Sunali is his biological daughter, then she and her children must be treated as Indian citizens. Bagchi said, “If she can establish biological connection with Bodu Sheikh (father), then she can claim to be an Indian citizen and through her, the son also becomes Indian.”

Chief Justice Surya Kant directed the Centre to arrange their return. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said this would be done “without prejudice to our contentions on merits and our right to put them under surveillance.”

The Supreme Court’s written order stated, “The Solicitor General, on instructions, informs that purely on humanitarian grounds, the Government of India has agreed to bring back Sunali Khatun along with her eight year old son Sabir.” The order added that she would be brought first to Delhi but that shifting her to Birbhum, where her father lives, may be advisable.

Khatun’s return will now take place under the supervision of the Union government, closing one chapter in a troubling deportation saga that raised serious questions about identification, citizenship verification and procedural lapses.