For Karimul Islam, 24, the decision was not easy. He had worked in Gurgaon for six years, washing cars in residential colonies, as reported by TOI. But on Wednesday, with a backpack on his shoulder and a one-way flight ticket bought by his family in West Bengal, he left the city.
“I have documents like Aadhaar, voter ID, but they’re not listening to anyone. They are rounding up people randomly and detaining them. I had to ask my family for money to buy a flight ticket because trains are not available at such a short notice,” Karimul told TOI.
He is one of several from Palra and other settlements who have begun to pack up and go.
Detention centres and rising numbersAccording to TOI sources, nearly 400 people have been picked up in the last six days for document checks. About 250 are still being held in community halls in Sector 10A, Sector 40, Badshapur and Manesar. These spaces have temporarily been converted into detention centres.
Locals fear that speaking Bengali has become a reason for suspicion. In Baliawas, Sector 58, about 200 people have already left for Assam in groups.
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‘We are Indians, not criminals’Saminul Islam, a resident of Baliawas for 15 years, said his wife and two children live with him in Gurgaon. “Suddenly, we are being labelled as illegal Bangladeshis. Several of our relatives have been detained in community centres even though they possess identity proofs of their citizenship. We are Indians, not criminals,” he said.Panic is not limited to those leaving. Many who have stayed are living under constant stress.”There’s fear because we don’t know what’s going to happen next,” said Panahrul Islam from Palra. “Every night, we fear someone will come knocking on doors, asking for papers. But even after people show documents, they are taken away. Some have been taken away while returning from work.” Panahrul cleans glass facades in high-rise buildings.‘If my husband was home, he’d be gone too’The anxiety has deeply affected women and children. Sukhi Bibi, 29, works as a domestic helper in Sectors 69 and 70. “They took away five people from our house. If my husband had been home, he would have been taken too,” she said.
“They are targeting the men first. My husband and children are leaving the city. I haven’t gone to work because of constant fear,” she added.
Sukhi also questioned the basis of the detentions. “Agar hum Bengal se hain, aur Bengali bolte hain, to kya hum Bangladeshi ho gaye? West Bengal is desh ka hissa hai.”
No answers, just locked doorsFor 20-year-old Asiman Bibi, the silence from authorities has been unbearable. “We don’t know where he is. He used to clean cars. We have all his documents, but they are not even telling us which centre he’s in,” she said, speaking about her husband who was taken six days ago.
Outside a locked door in Sector 58, Shabnam Bibi sat holding her two children. “We have lived here for 12 years, worked hard, paid school fees. Now we are suddenly criminals? My husband was rounded up and I don’t know where to go now,” she said.
‘People are leaving without tickets’In the absence of proper information or access to legal aid, rumours are doing the rounds. Talks of mass detentions and possible deportations have added to the confusion.
Asadul Sayeed, a scrap dealer from Palra, said, “We have been working in Gurgaon for the last six years but there is no one to stand with us now. So people are just leaving with just a bag, even without tickets.”
Labour contractor Taramiya, originally from Assam, said he was picked up in Baliawas four days ago and taken to a police station. “They wrote our names in the register. When we were being taken to the police station, the cops claimed that we would be released after verification. I was released but some others detained.”
He also alleged that 11 people taken from Sector 103 were assaulted and released only after paying Rs 1.2 lakh. “I am also being forced to leave Gurgaon with my daughters who study in class 2 and 3 at govt school in Behrampur,” he said.
Salilur Rehman, 44, also from Assam, backed the allegations, saying he knew others who were assaulted.
Police, however, rejected the allegations. As told to TOI, Gurgaon police spokesperson Sandeep Kumar said, “There are CCTV cameras at police stations where they were taken for verification as well as at the community centres. No such incident of assault or bribery has taken place. We are following the legal process and have already identified eight Bangladeshis who were residing here illegally. Legal proceedings have started to deport them.”
Even voluntary checks lead to detentionMeanwhile, even those who went willingly for verification are not being spared. A detainee at Sector 10A community centre said, “After learning about the verification drive, 16 of us went for verification voluntarily. Despite having documents, we were sent to the detention centre last Saturday. We work as contractual sanitation workers with the corporation.”
Gurgaon, once a place where many migrants carved out a living, now feels hostile to those very workers. The lines between suspicion and proof have blurred, and many are finding themselves caught in the gap. With no clarity and no voice of reassurance, families are leaving behind everything they’ve built, unsure if they’ll ever return.
(With inputs from TOI)