India’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the border town of Hakimpur has been the main cause of an unanticipated reverse migration wave at the Hakimpur checkpost. A large number of undocumented migrants of Bangladeshi origin are very scared of their fake documents getting exposed and of being scrutinised more, and hence they are in a hurry to get back home. The place that was once a border town has suddenly become very crowded with people who are leaving in a hurry, making emotional decisions, and facing life with deep and terrifying uncertainty.
A Sudden Surge at the Border
In the last few weeks, Hakimpur has been the place where the number of people wishing to cross over to Bangladesh has increased drastically. There are whole families among those who leave the town in a very short time, and some of these families have lived in India for years. Many of them confess that they came to India without legal documents, and after that, they got identity papers through some unofficial means. Now that verification is becoming stricter, they are scared of being questioned, and if that happens, legal action may be taken against them; hence, they are rushing to leave before they get interrogated.
Fear of Verification Drives the Exodus
SIR has scared the migrants so much that they are on the verge of a breakdown. There are many who have both Indian and Bangladeshi documents, and they got these papers through some dishonest intermediaries. The authorities are starting to scrutinise old documents, and as such, the fear that some may be using forged documents as identities is also growing. In the case that they are arrested, they choose to leave voluntarily rather than be detained. Their logic is straightforward: “If they check for old documents, then we have nothing to show.”
Scenes of Distress at Hakimpur
A very depressing and emotional scene can be witnessed in Hakimpur. Throughout the day, you can see people lining up for a very long time. There are men, women, children, and the elderly all coming there in hopes of getting their turn. Some of these people place themselves on the ground with plastic sheets on top of it, and some others lean on trucks waiting for their turn. There is no decent food, and shelter is very minimal; one may have to wait for days. However, in the whole scenario, fear is the most dominant feeling, which is strong enough to make people give up their Indian lives and move out of Indian cities.
The Complexity Behind the Migration
The issue of how illegal migrants got Indian identity documents has been one of the major factors contributing to the polarisation of opinion, and the situation has become worse. It has revealed the networks of touts, the loopholes in verification systems, and the difficulties that the authorities are facing in removing fictitious names from the voter lists. For the migrants, though, the problem is not political but very personal. It’s about life, security, and staying away from the trouble with the law that they never fully understood.
What Lies Ahead?
The exodus will get bigger as the voter-list revision is going on. The story that is playing out at Hakimpur is not simply a migration pattern but a human tragedy that has been influenced by fear, policy pressure, and the delicate relationship between identity and belonging. Returning home may not be the option for many; rather, it would be an urgent need to flee from the increasingly tighter web of documents and doubt.
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