Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Saturday that the foreign nationals lodged in Matia Detention Center have recently been sent back to Bangladesh. These include people from the Rohingya community. This was a central government campaign in which Assam also participated. Matia is the only transit camp in Assam where illegal foreigners are kept. The Chief Minister said that now only those people are left here whose court hearing on the cases is still going on. All the rest have been sent to Bangladesh.
123 people caught on Bangladesh border
Last week, there was news in the Bangladeshi media that India sent about 123 people to Bangladesh from Kurigram and Khagrachhari border of Bangladesh. These included Rohingya and Bengali-speaking people. Reacting to this, Chief Minister Sarma made it clear that this was not just a matter of Assam but it was an organized action at the level of the whole country. Under this action, foreign nationals identified across the country were sent to their native country. Among the foreign nationals who were kept in Matia camp in Assam, those against whom there was no appeal or whose cases were settled were also sent under this campaign.
How many people are left in Matia detention center now
According to Chief Minister Sarma, only 30 to 40 people are left in Matia detention center at present. These are the people who have been declared foreigners but the hearing of their cases is still pending in the courts. In January 2025, there were 270 people in this camp, including 103 Rohingyas, 70 Bangladeshis, 32 people of Chin community, one Senegalese citizen and 63 declared foreigners. Many of these people have also been released on bail later. Now only those people are inside whose cases are undergoing legal process.
Bangladesh’s response and diplomatic concern
According to the Bangladeshi newspaper ‘Daily Star’, the Dhaka government is trying to establish formal contact with India in this matter. Bangladesh’s National Security Advisor said that if the people sent are actually Bangladeshi citizens, the government will accept them but a formal process should be followed for this. He made it clear that sending people across the border in this manner is not an acceptable method. This can also create diplomatic tension between the two countries.
