After 6 years in detention, mentally-ill youth alleged to be Bangladeshi released by Gauhati High Court

A 22-year-old youth who spent six years in detention centre after he was accused of illegally entering India from Bangladesh, was ordered to be released by the Gauhati High Court after the boy's mother moved the High Court claiming that her son, an Indian, was suffering from schizophrenia and had run away from home [Nilima Bose v The State of Assam]. .A Bench of Justices N Kotiswar Singh and Nani Tagia was hearing a plea challenging the order of the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Karimganj by which the petitioner’s son Amit Bose was convicted of committing an offence under the Foreigner’s Act.He was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year. However, even after the imprisonment period ended, the petitioner’s son was not released from the detention camp on the ground that he was a foreigner and, thus he was in detention camp till date..The petitioner informed the Court that her son was, in fact, Indian but suffering from schizophrenia. She submitted that due to financial constraints they could not approach the Court earlier to challenge the conviction order.She also submitted certain documents which showed that her son was suffering from Schizophrenia..On hearing these submissions, the Bench sought a report from two the District Legal Service Authorities from Cachar and Kamurp with the aim to find a background on the family and their link to Amit Bose.Both the reports clearly indicated that the petitioner was Amit’s mother. They stated that he had left home sometime in the year 2016 without informing his family..Under such circumstances, the Court took a view that the matter required proper examination as if the order was not interfered with, it would have the effect of dubbing the petitioner’s son a foreigner.Therefore, the matter was listed for further deliberation on 6 May..The petitioner’s son was directed to be released and handed over to her in the meantime. The petitioner, however, was made to furnish an undertaking to produce her son before the Superintendent of Police (Border), Karimganjas and the Court..Advocate P Agarwal appeared for the petitioner and the State was represented by the Public Prosecutor..Hindustan Times spoke to the father of the youth, who said that the boy had stormed out of the house and boarded a train when he was 15. He was upset over the father losing his temper and shouting at him “leave us and go to Bangladesh.” HT reported that that the boy was stopped by railway authorities during routine check up and when interrogated, he told the authorities that he was going to Bangladesh.He was then detained on the suspicion of being a Bangladeshi.“My one remark destroyed his life and he ended up in jail,” said his father, who helps at a shop in Guwahati..[Read Order]