Centre should bring back persons deported to Bangladesh for hearing on nationality: Supreme Court
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday verbally observed that the Union government should bring back residents of West Bengal who have been deported to Bangladesh on suspicion of being foreigners, as an interim measure, to allow them to plead their case regarding their nationality.
The top court emphasised that individuals who claim to be Indian citizens have the right to present their case, supported by documents, before the authorities. It urged the Union government to temporarily return the deported individuals so they can be heard and allow verification of the authenticity of their documents.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi made the suggestion during a hearing, addressing a counsel representing the Union. Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Sanjay Hegde appeared on behalf of the petitioners.
While acknowledging the justification for deporting an “illegal entrant” from Bangladesh, CJI Kant remarked, “If somebody has something to show you, that wait I belong to India, I am born and brought up here, and I am actually an Indian national, he has a right to plead before you.”
He also noted that there was substantial material on record, such as birth certificates and land holdings of close family members, that could serve as evidence of nationality. He pointed out that earlier, there had been inadequate inquiries before deportation.
“The allegation is that the deportee was never heard and you sent them. Why don't you, at least as a temporary measure, bring them back, give them an opportunity of hearing, verify all these documents or facts and take a holistic view," Live Law quoted the Chief Justice as saying.
The bench gave the counsel representing the Union government time until December 1 to receive instructions from the Centre on the matter.
Since May, thousands of Bengali-speaking migrant workers in states ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party have reportedly been rounded up and asked to prove their Indian citizenship, with some being declared foreigners and forcibly deported to Bangladesh, despite their claims of being Indian citizens.
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Mathura boat capsize tragedy: Death toll climbs to 13
Mathura (UP)(PTI): With the recovery of two more bodies on Sunday, the death toll in the boat capsize incident in the Yamuna river in Mathura has climbed to 13, officials said on Sunday.
Search for three more missing persons is underway.
Superintendent of Police (Rural) Suresh Chandra Rawat said renewed search efforts led to the recovery of the body of a college student, identified as Dinki Bansal, near Devraha Baba Ghat and that of a man identified as Rishabh Sharma approximately 3 km away from the accident site.
The incident occurred on Friday afternoon when a boat carrying over two dozen tourists, primarily from Punjab, hit a floating drum of a pontoon bridge and capsized near Kesi Ghat in Vrindavan.
Most of the victims were from Jagraon and Dugri areas of Ludhiana district.
Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) along with the district administration and local police were actively engaged in the search for the missing pilgrims.
However, strong currents of the Yamuna river and the significant depth of the water at the ghats are proving a hindrance.
Circle Officer (Mant) Sandeep Singh said the Yamuna river stretch extending from Keshi Ghat to Gokul Barrage has been divided into seven sectors.
The search for the missing individuals will now be conducted within this specific 20-square-km zone. A Station House Officer (SHO) has been designated as the in-charge for each sector.
Acting on the orders of the DIG (Agra Range), seven SHOs will oversee operations across the seven sectors of river Yamuna.
Giving details about the operation, Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue) Pankaj Kumar Verma, citing NDRF officials, on Saturday had said although the search for the missing persons is currently focused within a 14-km radius from the spot where the boat had capsized, there is a possibility that they may have been swept much further downstream.
SHO of Vrindavan police station Sanjay Pandey said boat operator Pappu was arrested late on Friday night.
He is accused of failing to provide life jackets to passengers before allowing them to board the boat, and operating the boat at high speed. This resulted in the boat losing control and colliding with a pontoon bridge's drum, which led to the accident, officials said.
Police have registered a case and also arrested the contractor, Narayan Sharma, responsible for the repair work on the pontoon bridge.
Rawat said that on Friday evening, police registered a case under section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the boatman Pappu (alias Dauji) and Sharma, and subsequently arrested them.
According to the case details, Pappu's boat did not have any safety equipment or provisions whatsoever.
Moreover, despite repeated pleas from pilgrims, Pappu operated the boat at high speed. By the time he realised the danger upon approaching the pontoons of the bridge, it was already too late.
Consequently, after colliding with a pontoon drum, the boat lost control and capsized. It has also come to light that he is among those operators who have not obtained the requisite license to operate a boat.
Sharma was carrying out the work of dismantling and reassembling the pontoon bridge without providing any prior notification.
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