Benapole (Jashore): The immigration authorities have sent back 83 devotees of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) who were entering India through the Benapole check post in Jashore in the last two days.
On Sunday (December 1) at 10 am, nine devotees and 74 devotees were sent back after the immigration authorities objected to their travel to India. These ISKCON devotees from different districts of the country came to the Benapole immigration to go to India.
The ISKCON devotees who came to Benapole for the journey to India said that they wanted to go to India to perform religious ceremonies. But they could not enter India as the immigration police turned them back.
Imtiaz Ahmed, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of the Benapole Immigration Check post, said that the current situation in the country is worrying. Objections were raised against their travel as their journey was considered suspicious. As a result, 83 people have returned in the last two days. If Indian immigration suspects any of them, many of them are being turned back every day, objecting to their travel. However, there is no restriction on the travel of ordinary passport holders, the OC said.
Recently, Chinmoy Krishna Das, spokesperson of the Bangladesh Sanatani Jagran Jote, was arrested. After this, there has been a demand for his release from India. Moreover, extremist organizations in West Bengal, India, are pressuring the Indian government to stop visas, medical services and import-export trade between the two countries for Bangladeshis. However, so far, trade and travel between the two countries have been normal.
Assistant Director of Benapole Port, Kazi Ratan said, 386 trucks of various types of goods were imported from India through Benapole Port on Saturday and 162 trucks of goods were exported. 5,357 passport holders traveled between the two countries.