A 62-years-old Tripura man returned home from Bangladeshi jail after 36 years. He was visiting his relatives house in 1988 without having proper documents and got arrested. His name is Shahjahan Mia, resident of Sepahijala district of Tripura.   

During his visit to Bangladesh, police raided his relative’s home and detained him for breaking the law by entering the neighbouring nation.  

Shahjahan Mia’s Harrowing Experience

Shahjahan Mia was then sentenced for 11 years in prison in a “false case”. But even after spending 11 years in prison he was not released from jail. Later, he was sentenced for an extra 25 years due to lack of necessary documentation.  

In a report he mentioned that he was tortured for 14 days in police custody. 

A few months ago, media reports brought injustice meted out to Shahjahan’s to the public’s attention. A foundation named the ZARA foundation become aware of his predicament.  

What is ZARA Foundation? 

It is an Agartala-based foundation that helps migrants who are trapped in foreign countries for any reason. 

The Zara Foundation chairman, Moushahid Ali, moved quickly to get Shahjahan released. They said that, at Srimantapur LCS, Shahjahan was finally handed over to BSF staff after multiple legal proceedings.  

ZARA played a crucial role in making his return to India possible.  

Shahjahan was just 25 years old when he was caught. He also stated that when he left home his wife was pregnant. He met his son Litan Mia for the first time who is now married.  

While crossing the border Shahjahan Mia told the media that words cannot express how happy he is. He felt like he’s in heaven. This feeling is same as rebirth. He also said that he never thought he would come back to his home. Later he said, he will be forever grateful to the ZARA organization. Shahjahan is just one case, there are many other people who are trapped in foreign countries and are non-guilty. Shahjahan was just visiting his relatives and got caught. There are also many other NGOs like ZARA who are working selflessly to help families reunite. 

Current Political Unrest in Bangladesh

As of now Bangladesh is in major political turmoil following the anti-quota protest which turned to anti-government, leaving protestors across the country demanding resignation of former PM Sheikh Hasina. 

Reportedly, the former PM left Bangladesh and fled to India after the violent protest on her government which forced her to flee from Bangladesh.  

In the early of the July, the protestors who mainly consisted of university students demanded the abolishment of quotas in civil service. Initially it developed into a movement only against the government and was comprised of all classes of individuals.

More than 300 people have been killed in the violence-related riots, although at least 20 people have been killed in one day. The actions the government used in their attempts to deter protesters included curfews, internet shut down, and augmented police presence; but all these measures served only to worsen the situation.

The unrest has also affected Bangladesh from an economical and trading point of view especially in relation to its neighbours especially India. The country is now in a severe situation as it has been expected to establish an interim government and it is facing both short and long-term problems which hamper the stability of this country.