9 Bangladeshi nationals get 2 years in jail for illegally entering India

The nine were travelling on the Dibrugarh–Chennai Express when they were intercepted by the STF at Bhubaneswar railway station following a tip

A Bhubaneswar court on Tuesday sentenced nine Bangladeshi nationals to two years of rigorous imprisonment for illegally entering India without valid documentation and imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on each convict.

STF inspector Manoj Kumar Sethi said the group was found guilty under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act, 1946 (Shutterstock)

The group, which included three women, was arrested in March 2025 aboard a train travelling from Assam in India’s northeast toward the southern coast, inspector Manoj Kumar Sethi of Odisha police’s special task force (STF), who investigated the case, said.

Sethi said the group was found guilty under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act, 1946, which prescribes a maximum punishment of five years for violations. If the convicts fail to pay the ₹10,000 fine, they will serve an additional three months of rigorous imprisonment.

The case dates back to March 8, 2025, when STF personnel intercepted the nine individuals on the Dibrugarh–Chennai Express at Bhubaneswar Railway Station following an intelligence tip.

The group — comprising six men and three women from four districts of Bangladesh (Mymensingh, Bagerhat, Pirojpur and Dhaka) — had entered India via the Assam border. Sethi said police seized seven mobile phones and Bangladeshi currency from the suspects.

The nine have been identified as Md Hasim (46), Sajib Khan alias Md Sajib (24), Allam Shaika (41), Md Azeem (40), Dilara Sheikh alias Altaf (45), Md Soha Talukdar (36), Karima Begum (25), Monira Begum (30), and Sahana Begum (45).

Last year, Odisha’s chief minister, Mohan Majhi told state lawmakers that more than 3,700 undocumented Bangladeshis had been identified across the state.