Police in South 24 Parganas district, West Bengal, arrested three Bangladeshi nationals on charges of illegally entering India and residing in the state, officials confirmed on Wednesday, 27 May. The arrests, made under the Baruipur Police District, have taken a political turn after one of the detained women alleged that a local Trinamool Congress (TMC) panchayat member accepted money in exchange for arranging Aadhaar cards.

How the Arrests Were Made

Personnel from the Mallikpur outpost of Baruipur police station conducted a raid following a tip-off from a confidential source. A couple — identified as Shafiqul Islam Mollah and his wife Monira Begum — was apprehended during the operation. Initial investigation revealed that the two hail from Chaluhati village, under Nengur Bazar Post Office, Manirampur Police Station, Jessore district, Bangladesh.

In a separate operation in the Hariharpur area of Baruipur, police also arrested a Bangladeshi woman identified as Lakin Tanti, 39, whose husband is named Ziaur Rahman Tati. Whether she possessed any valid documents is currently under investigation.

The Broker Network Angle

According to investigators, Shafiqul Islam Mollah and Monira Begum allegedly crossed the India-Bangladesh border through a ring of brokers before settling in the Mallikpur area. Police are now interrogating the three detainees to establish their purpose for entering India, the structure of the broker network, and the identities of their local contacts. Investigators also suspect the couple was attempting to obtain Indian identity documents to secure permanent residency.

Authorities are examining whether all three arrested persons are connected or whether they entered India through the same smuggling channel.

TMC Panchayat Member Accused of Taking Money

The case acquired a sharper political dimension after Monira Begum alleged, following her detention, that Shahjahan Sardar — a TMC member of the Mallikpur Gram Panchayat within the Baruipur West Assembly constituency — accepted ₹5,000 from them with the promise of arranging Aadhaar cards. She claimed the documents were necessary for local residency and that despite repeated follow-ups, no work was done and no satisfactory response was received.

Notably, these allegations have not yet been officially verified. According to police sources, the complaint is currently being examined. No response has been received from the accused TMC leader as of the time of reporting.

What Police Have Said

Superintendent of Police, Baruipur Police District, Shuvendu Kumar, confirmed the arrests, stating: 'On Tuesday, after receiving information from secret sources, we conducted raids in various places under Baruipur Police District and arrested three people on charges of illegally entering West Bengal from Bangladesh and residing there.'

Kumar added that police had obtained 'some sensational information' during interrogation and that all aspects of the matter were under investigation. 'Due to the progress of the investigation, nothing can be made public at this time,' he said. Shafiqul Islam Mollah and Monira Begum were sent to the Baruipur holding centre late on Tuesday night; Lakin Tanti remains under questioning.

Broader Context

The arrests come amid heightened scrutiny over illegal cross-border movement in the South 24 Parganas district, which shares a porous stretch of the India-Bangladesh border. Allegations of local political figures facilitating identity documents for undocumented migrants — if verified — would represent a serious breach of India's citizenship and documentation framework. This is not the first time such claims have surfaced in the border districts of Bengal, though convictions in similar cases have been rare.