The campaign follows a landslide electoral victory by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP in West Bengal, where the party pledged to “detect, delete and deport” illegal migrants.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Sunday that 4,800 Bangladeshi citizens had already been deported after being held in newly established detention facilities across the state.

“We have started the work of deporting Bangladeshi infiltrators who do not fall under the purview of the Citizenship Amendment Act,” Adhikari told reporters in Kolkata.

He said the government established holding centers in every district during May and that a further 836 people were currently being held pending deportation.

India and Bangladesh share a long and porous border, and migration between the two countries has historically been driven by economic opportunities, family ties and cross-border cultural links.

The new state administration has also ordered detention measures for Rohingya refugees, members of a predominantly Muslim minority who fled persecution in neighboring Myanmar.

The deportation drive has renewed debate over immigration and citizenship in one of India’s most politically sensitive border regions.

Senior BJP leaders have frequently described undocumented migrants as “infiltrators,” arguing that illegal migration places pressure on public resources and alters demographic balances.

Critics, including civil rights advocates and opposition groups, contend that the government’s rhetoric and enforcement measures disproportionately affect Muslim communities and risk undermining due process protections. Human rights organizations have previously accused Indian authorities of forcibly expelling Bengali-speaking Muslims without adequate legal review.

The crackdown comes as diplomatic relations between India and Bangladesh continue to recover from tensions that emerged after the 2024 political upheaval in Dhaka, which ended the rule of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, a close partner of New Delhi.

A new government elected in Bangladesh in February has sought to stabilize ties with India. Border security chiefs from both countries are scheduled to meet in New Delhi on Monday to discuss cross-border issues, including migration and security cooperation.

Polling in five states and territories concluded over April and May, and early attention has focused on West Bengal, where the BJP mounted an intensive campaign to unseat Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of the All India Trinamool Congress, which has governed the state since 2011.

Exit polls released last week suggested a narrow edge for the BJP over the TMC, though such projections have historically proven unreliable in India. Political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty said the outcome in West Bengal could have wider national implications, describing the contest as one that could “tilt the balance of power.”

The campaign was marked by controversy over the removal of millions of names from electoral rolls, a move authorities described as targeting ineligible voters but which critics argued disproportionately affected marginalized and minority communities.

Banerjee expressed confidence ahead of the count, dismissing the BJP’s chances and urging supporters to remain patient. In contrast, West Bengal BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya said the election reflected public demand for change and predicted a defeat for the ruling party.

Elsewhere, in Tamil Nadu, the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam led by Chief Minister M. K. Stalin is widely expected to retain power. In Assam, the BJP is projected to maintain control, while in Puducherry, the party remains part of the governing coalition.In Kerala, exit polls indicate a closely contested race, with the Congress-led alliance seen as having an advantage over the incumbent Communist government.

The results are being closely watched as a gauge of Modi’s political standing amid ongoing economic and foreign policy challenges, including high unemployment and negotiations over a trade agreement with the United States.

Voting took place throughout April in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala and the union territory of Puducherry, with attention centered on whether the BJP could expand its footprint in major opposition-held regions ahead of future national political contests.

Exit polls, while often used as early indicators in India, have a mixed record and final outcomes can differ significantly from projections.The most closely watched contest is in West Bengal, where the BJP mounted an aggressive campaign to unseat Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), which has governed the state since 2011.

Several exit polls suggested the BJP held a narrow advantage over the TMC, raising the possibility that Modi’s party could take power in the state of more than 100 million people for the first time.Banerjee’s TMC won 213 of the 294 seats in the 2021 assembly election, and the state has a history of electoral violence and intense political rivalry.

This year’s campaign was also marked by controversy over a Special Intensive Revision of voter rolls, a process authorities said was intended to remove ineligible voters, but which critics argued disproportionately affected marginalized and minority communities.

Political activist Yogendra Yadav said there was “no way” the TMC would lose in what he described as a fair election, alleging that the BJP could only prevail through manipulation of voter lists or counting irregularities.The BJP has denied opposition allegations of electoral malpractice.

In Assam and Puducherry, the BJP-led alliance was widely projected to retain power, reinforcing the party’s hold in regions where it already governs.In Tamil Nadu, one of India’s largest industrial states, exit polls indicated the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) led by Chief Minister M. K. Stalin was likely to remain in office.

The polls also suggested actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay, leading the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam party, could emerge as a significant new challenger to the state’s established political parties.In Kerala, India’s only communist-ruled state, projections indicated a closely fought contest, with a Congress-led alliance expected to challenge the ruling Left Democratic Front.

Strong results for the BJP in the state elections would strengthen Modi’s political position as his government navigates economic pressures including high unemployment and negotiations over a pending trade deal with the United States.

Trivedi, 75, a former railways and health minister and a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is expected to take up the assignment shortly, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

The appointment comes as India seeks to restore trust with Bangladesh after bilateral relations deteriorated in 2024, when a popular uprising forced then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to New Delhi, where she remains.

Her removal strained ties during the tenure of Bangladesh’s interim administration, which Indian officials viewed as moving closer to China, raising strategic concerns in New Delhi over Beijing’s expanding influence in South Asia.

Relations began improving after February elections brought Tarique Rahman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to power, replacing the interim government and opening space for renewed diplomatic engagement between the two countries.

Trivedi’s appointment is seen as politically significant because India typically appoints senior career foreign service officers to such diplomatic posts. His political background and long experience in national and regional politics suggest New Delhi is seeking a more direct political channel in managing relations with Dhaka.

He joined the BJP in 2021 after leaving a regional political party in West Bengal, the Indian state bordering Bangladesh that plays a central role in cross-border trade, migration and security issues.West Bengal is also strategically important for Modi’s party as it seeks to expand its electoral footprint in ongoing state-level political contests.

Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan, was part of British India before partition in 1947 and became independent in 1971 with military and political support from India, making the bilateral relationship historically sensitive and strategically significant.

Bangladesh’s foreign minister visited New Delhi earlier this month seeking increased fuel and fertiliser supplies, stronger energy cooperation and relaxed travel restrictions for Bangladeshi citizens.

However, one of the most sensitive unresolved issues remains India’s refusal so far to extradite Hasina, a point of friction in the relationship despite the broader diplomatic thaw.India has not publicly indicated any change in its position regarding Hasina, whose continued stay in New Delhi remains politically contentious in Bangladesh.

The appointment of Trivedi underscores India’s effort to preserve its influence in Dhaka at a time when Beijing continues to expand economic and strategic ties across the region through infrastructure investment, trade and defense cooperation.

Police said the former insurgents had chosen to abandon armed struggle and rejoin civilian life as part of an ongoing nationwide effort to dismantle the final remnants of the Maoist movement.

The Telangana police said in a statement that 47 Maoist members had “chosen to join the mainstream,” adding that “almost all remaining underground key leaders have now been neutralized.”The surrender follows Home Minister Amit Shah’s declaration on March 30 that India had become “Naxal-free,” marking what the government described as the effective end of an insurgency that began nearly six decades ago.

The rebellion traces its origins to 1967 in Naxalbari, a village in West Bengal’s Himalayan foothills, where a peasant uprising inspired a Maoist movement that later spread across large parts of central and eastern India.

At its peak in the mid-2000s, the insurgency operated across what officials called the “Red Corridor,” stretching through mineral-rich and forested regions, with an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 fighters active across multiple states.

More than 12,000 people, including rebels, security personnel, and civilians, were killed during the conflict, according to official figures.The government intensified military and intelligence operations over the past two years, targeting the final strongholds of the insurgency in remote forest regions, particularly in Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Odisha, and parts of Maharashtra.

Authorities said surrendered rebels were being provided rehabilitation packages that included vocational training, financial support, and new civilian identities to facilitate reintegration into society.Police said the 47 former rebels would receive a combined rehabilitation package worth about $159,000, or roughly $3,400 each.

Officials have also appealed to remaining underground cadres to lay down their arms and take advantage of state rehabilitation schemes.Despite the decline of the insurgency, authorities face the continuing challenge of clearing hundreds of improvised land mines and explosive devices planted by Maoist groups along forest routes and remote villages.

The rebels had long claimed to be fighting for the rights of marginalized Indigenous communities in central India’s resource-rich tribal belts, where disputes over land rights, mining, and displacement remain politically sensitive.

Security analysts say that while organized armed resistance has sharply weakened, the social and economic grievances that originally fueled the movement continue to persist in several regions.

The latest surrenders reflect the government’s effort to convert military gains into long-term stability while preventing the possibility of renewed underground mobilization.

“The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds,” the country’s main counter-terrorism arm said in a statement.

Those arrested “were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places” including the capital region.

Six of the militants were arrested in the eastern state of West Bengal and while three in the southern state of Kerala, the NIA said, adding the individuals were “associated with Pakistan sponsored module of Al-Qaeda.”

A spokesman for Pakistan’s foreign office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pakistan has often denied giving material support to militants.

India has stepped up an offensive against militants in the Muslim-majority region of Kashmir and elsewhere.

Last year, Indian forces killed the leader of an Al-Qaeda-affiliated militant group in Kashmir, triggering protests in parts of the disputed region.

In the latest raids, the NIA seized sharp weapons, domestically made firearms and locally fabricated body armor. The nine militants will be produced in court for police custody and further investigation, the agency said.

Prevention of Lynching Bill 2019 defines that “lynching as any attempt or act of violence by a mob on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth, language, dietary practices, sexual orientation, political affiliation, ethnicity, or any other ground.”

The bill proposes that a maximum punishment of life imprisonment and fines ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh against the mob-lynchers and imprisonment of up to three years and fined a maximum Rs 1 lakh for assisting mob-lynchers.

Also the bill states one year jail and a fine up to Rs 50,000 for publishing, communicating or disseminating offensive material by any method – physical or electronic.  

The bill is passed by the state government with the support of the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) parties, however Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) neither showed any support nor did it oppose. BJP felt such a move is to settle political scores, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

“Lynching is a social evil and all of us have to come together to fight against it,” she said while formulating the bill in the Assembly.”

“The Supreme Court has given direction to take action against lynching. We need to raise awareness against the incident of lynchings,” she added.

According to a Reuters report, a total of 63 cow vigilante attacks had occurred inIndia between 2010 and mid 2017, mostly since the Modi government came to power in 2014, which has increased to a scaring rate between 2017 and 2019.

Cyclone Fani (“Snake” in Bengali) slammed into the eastern state of Odisha earlier in the day, reportedly killing at least eight people and one in Bangladesh, where it was headed after Kolkata, officials said.

With effects felt as far away as Mount Everest, winds gusting up to 200 km per hour sent coconut trees flying and cut off power, water and telecommunications.

Authorities in Odisha, where 10,000 people perished in a 1999 cyclone, had evacuated more than a million people as they worried about a possible 1.5-meter (five-foot) storm surge sweeping far inland.

Eight people were killed, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported, including a teenage boy, a woman hit by concrete debris and an elderly woman who suffered a heart attack in one of several thousand shelters packed with families.

Odisha disaster management official Prabhat Mahapatra said there were not yet any confirmed casualty figures.

“Around 160 people were injured in Puri alone. Our relief work is ongoing,” he said.

Authorities in Bangladesh, next in Fani’s trajectory, said a woman was killed by a tree, and that 14 villages were inundated as a tidal surge breached flood dams. Some 400,000 people have been taken to shelters, officials said.

Hundreds of thousands more people in India’s West Bengal state have also been given orders to flee. Local airports have been shut, with train lines and roads closed.

“It just went dark and then suddenly we could barely see five meters in front of us,” said one resident in the holy city of Puri, where Fani made landfall.

“There were roadside food carts, store signs all flying by in the air,” the man said. “The wind is deafening.”

Another witness said he saw a small car being blown along a street by the winds and then turned over.

PTI reported that a big crane collapsed and that a police booth was dragged 60 meters (yards) by the wind.

As Fani headed northeastwards, losing strength but still packing a punch, Odisha authorities battled to remove fallen trees and other debris strewn over roads and to restore phone and internet services.

Electricity pylons were down, tin roofs were ripped off, piles of bricks could be seen and windows of hotels and homes were smashed.

Gouranga Malick, 48, was solemnly picking up bricks after the small two-room house he shared with his six-strong family collapsed, its roof blown away.

“I have never witnessed this type of devastation in my lifetime,” he said.

“Energy infrastructure has been completely destroyed,” Odisha’s chief minister Naveen Patnaik said.

A baby was born near Odisha’s capital Bhubaneswar just as the cyclone tore through.

“We are calling her Lady Fani,” a spokesperson for the hospital told PTI.

Next in Fani’s sights was West Bengal’s capital Kolkata, home to 4.5 million people, with the eye of the storm due around midnight (1830 GMT) and rain already falling hard several hours before.

The city normally teeming with people was all but deserted, with shopping malls shut and hawkers absent from the pavements after packing up their stalls. Only a few vehicles packed with people heading home plied the roads.

Subrata Das, manager of the AXIS Mall, said: “We have seen how the cyclone ravaged some buildings in Bhubaneswar. We don’t want to take any risk. We are trying to survive the cyclone.”

“If we don’t take our things, we fear the cyclone will raze everything,” said Murad Hussain, 45, who runs a stall.

“We are monitoring the situation 24/7 and doing all it takes… Be alert, take care and stay safe for the next two days,” West Bengal’s chief minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted.

The winds were felt as far away as Mount Everest, with tents blown away at Camp 2 at 6,400 meters (21,000 feet) and Nepali authorities cautioning helicopters against flying.

Ports have been closed but the Indian Navy has sent six warships to the region. Hundreds of workers were taken off offshore oil rigs.

“We are mooring our boat because it’s the only means of income for us. Only Allah knows when we can go back to fishing again,” Akbar Ali, a fisherman near the town of Dacope in Bangladesh, said while battling surging waves to tie his boat to a tree. — Saudi Gazette