Will prefer living in Indian jail but will not go back: Bangladeshi family after detention in Tripura

Bangladesh's Sankar Chandra Sarkar, a man in his 40s says he would rather live in an Indian jail than face the dire circumstances in his homeland.

Sankar, an auto driver from Dhanpur village in Bangladesh's Kishorganj district was arrested by the Government Railway Police (GRP) in the Ambassa Police Station jurisdiction of Tripura’s Dhalai District, on December 7. 

He, along with nine other family members, including his wife, children, brother, and elderly father, Sudhir Chandra Sarkar, were detained by Indian authorities while crossing the international border in search of safety.

Speaking with reporters, Sankar expressed his despair over the worsening situation for minorities in Bangladesh following fall of the Sheikh Hasina government.

"The situation in Bangladesh has become unbearable since the Sheikh Hasina government weakened. Minorities like us are no longer safe. Living there with wife and children is very tough. We face constant attacks and threats. Even filing complaints leads to more violence. I’m just a driver trying to support my family, but survival has become impossible. We crossed the border to find peace, and even if it means imprisonment, we’d prefer that to going back," he said.

He claimed that he and his family have come here for living a peaceful life and if Police caught them and put them behind bars they are ready to go rather living in the Bangladesh.

“We are 10 people here including my father. After spending nights in forest we have crossed the border and reached today wee hours. One person helped us to cross the border. We were enroute to Silchar in Assam using train. We are ready to die here but we will not go there”, Sankar claimed.

The GRP, acting on a tip-off, detained the group near the Ambassa Railway Station. 

GRP official Pintu Das said, “We received information about a group of Bangladeshi nationals waiting outside Ambassa Railway Station. Upon investigation, we spotted an auto-rickshaw with its passengers concealed by curtains. This raised suspicion, and we detained them. Upon questioning, they admitted to being Bangladeshi nationals. Among the 10 people detained are three men, six women, and one minor. They confessed to crossing the border at Kamalpur in Dhalai District and were on their way to Silchar."