Bangladeshi Woman, Allowed To Be Repatriated By Air: Calcutta HC

BACKGROUND OF THE CASE

• The title of the case is Lovely Akter v. Union of India.
• The woman came to India with a valid passport and visa, but due to the COVID-19 restrictions, she could not go back.
• She worked at a Mumbai based dance bar.
• Earlier this year, when she was trying to go back to Bangladesh illegally, she was arrested by the Border Security Force (BSF).
• Then she was handed over to the officials at Swarupnagar Police Station in the North 24 Parganas district.

PREVIOUS ORDER

• When her case was heard in the District Court, she pleaded guilty.
• The Court sentenced her to 66 days of imprisonment.
• On June 19, she completed her detention period.

ARGUMENTS BY PETITIONER

• Soumyajit Das Mahapatra, representing the petitioner argued that although her sentence has been long completed, she is still trapped here.
• This is due to the lengthy administrative problems in the procedure of sending her back to her native country.
• Therefore, she had to move to the High Court to ask for redressal.
• She had to file for the instant petition requesting the Court’s leave for repatriation after a representation for the same was declined by the Central Government.

OBSERVATIONS MADE BY COURT

• On Thursday, the Calcutta High Court gave the permit for deporting the Bangladeshi national back to her native country, after considering the fact that she had been languishing in a Correctional Home, even after she had completed her detention period.
• Justice Debangsu Basak observed that, as the petitioner is a native of Bangladesh National and she has completed her custodial time period in the Correctional Home of India, it would be best if she is allowed to go to her nation immediately.
• The Correctional Home at which the petitioner is presently located was instructed to take up appropriate steps for carrying out the deportation of the petitioner immediately.
• During the hearing, the Court noted that the Special Secretary to the West Bengal Government had made a representation on July 13, 2021 requesting for the immediate deportation of the petitioner to Bangladesh by air.
• As the petitioner had expressed her desire to travel by air to Bangladesh, the Superintendent of the Correctional Home was ordered to depute appropriate police personnel to accompany the petitioner to the airport.
• The petitioner has been ordered to submit all the required documents to the Superintendent of the concerned Correctional Home, which would be used in her deportation process.
• She has also been instructed to purchase the air ticket for her flight and present the same before Superintendent of the concerned Correctional Home.
• For ensuring the compliance with the order, the Court will hear this matter again on August 23.

DO YOU THINK JUSTICE WAS SERVED TO THE BANGLADESHI WOMAN?