As Odisha expedited the process of identifying and deporting Bangladeshi nationals, a man who allegedly entered India illegally 35 years ago and has since built a life with his wife and four children now finds himself at the crossroads of legal uncertainty following his arrest and subsequent trial.
Abu Sahik, 53, has been languishing in Aska jail in Odisha’s Ganjam district for months. His lawyers argued for his freedom on the basis that the provisions of Article 21 apply to a person already in India and he would be entitled to demand compliance with the principles of natural justice.
Mr. Sahik was among 10 Bangladeshis arrested by police from Bhubaneswar station on September 3, 2025. After local courts rejected his bail plea, he approached the Orissa High Court seeking a report from the state government.
According to an investigation by the Deputy Superintendent of Poland, Ganjam, the man entered India from Bangladesh without any valid document in 1991. After a brief stay in West Bengal, he came to Aska area along with three friends and started earning a living by repairing umbrellas.
In 2001, Mr. Sahik got married and had four children. In 2008, he obtained a voter ID card and besides a ration card for his wife, he also got an Aadhaar card and a PAN card in his name. In 2019, a man applied at the local post office for an Indian passport with a forged document showing his birthplace Aska. After the passport was issued, the Regional Passport Office, Bhubaneswar raised objections and sought clarification on the documents provided.
Mr. Sahik’s counsel Bibhu Prasad Tripathy said his client deserves bail. “It is a settled principle that the law does not permit or permit any discrimination between a foreign national and an Indian national in the matter of grant of bail and the same has to be considered on the facts and circumstances of each case,” he said.
“The court can lay down various conditions that may be necessary to make the accused available for trial, but it cannot be said that the accused will not be granted bail because he is a foreign national,” he said.
Mr Tripathy argued that “the deportation process is an administrative exercise which will be conducted independently… but he (Mr Sahik) has every right to face the court and cannot fight if he remains in jail.” The matter is listed till March 2, 2026 for hearing in the Odisha High Court.
In 2024, the Odisha government ordered all district administrations to carry out comprehensive identification to trace Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in the state. Officials have been instructed to form joint teams of block office, tehsil and police station personnel to identify “illegal immigrants” following the Bangladesh riots.
In a reply tabled in the assembly, the government had earlier said that 3,740 Bangladeshi nationals were found to be living illegally in the state.
Published – 12 Feb 2026 20:58 IST