The hope for peace to prevail
On a winter day in January, when the sun sometimes escapes India’s Gangetic plains, a 73-year-old retired bank employee sits on a sofa in the narrow first-floor living room of a newly built house on a street of the Nepalgarh neighborhood, in the heart of Kishanganj, a town in Bihar bordering Bangladesh.
Three nameplates hang outside his modest house: one with his name, the other two with businesses under their names, State Bank of India and Microsoft. Saha says, “After settling here, we focused on the education of our children.”
Saying that he is generally a contented man, Saha is concerned about the tension in Bangladesh. He pauses frequently as he speaks: “About 30 of my family members still live in Feni district (in Bangladesh).
The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council said in a statement in early 2026 that 51 incidents of communal violence were reported in December 2025 alone. Parliamentary elections will be held in the country on February 12, following mass protests that resulted in the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League. Research and advocacy group Human Rights Watch noted incidents of violence during the political transition following the Monsoon Revolution, particularly targeting vulnerable genders and religious minorities.
find a home
Kishanganj town is about 350 km from Patna, the capital of Bihar State, but only 23 km from the Bangladesh border. Nepalgarh is named after Nepal, which is just 60 km away.
Saha recalls that 65 to 70 families migrated from Bangladesh before the 1965 Indo-Pakistani war. He remembers that when he was in Grade 6, he left with his family after a bull they owned was allegedly eaten by a neighbour. Many families fled, feeling that they were being persecuted because of their religion.
Prof. Head of Department of History, ND College, affiliated to Purnea University in Northeast Bihar.
In December 1963, a relic that Muslims believe to be a strand of the Prophet Muhammad’s hair was stolen from the Hazratbal shrine in Kashmir. Although he was rescued in less than a month, the repercussions of his theft were felt by Hindus in what was then East Pakistan.
In India, new immigrants were accommodated in various refugee camps across the country: in Tripura, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka. In Bihar, about 8-10 people were helped for every migrant family. kattha (approximately 10,800-13,600 square feet) Loan of ₹ 4,000 for land and house construction or starting a new business in Nepalgarh.
“Some families who cannot afford to set up a house here or start a business for a new life migrate from here and sell their land to the local people,” says Shankar Das, a 50-year-old local politician whose family emigrated from Bangladesh.
“Many of those who came from Bangladesh are still here and today,” said his relative Kumar Vishal, who is also the chairman of the local neighborhood council. kattha The value of the land is ₹30 lakh.”
remembering past things
Ameebala Das, 74, along with her husband Krishna Chandra Das and others, had migrated from Cox’s Bazar of Chattogram (formerly Chittagaon) in Bangladesh in the 1960s. “It was a life full of problems,” Das recalls. “For days I was wearing a single cotton sari and all we had was flour, which I kneaded with water stored in a clay pot. When we crossed the border, all our gold, silver and other belongings were seized by those who ruled it.”
In India, “After being temporarily shifted from one refugee camp to another, we finally found our home in Nepalgarh in 1964. We have been here ever since,” he says, almost inaudibly. Her husband gradually opened a kirana (provisions) shop in the area to make ends meet, and the family was relieved of this distress. He married his daughter and son and today lives with his family in a small building with tin doors.
. Her husband passed away in 2011. He remembers leaving behind 67 family members in Bangladesh. His family says they won’t be calling until about two weeks ago. Now they can’t reach them.
prayers for peace
Pochhapoti Sutradhar settled in the Nepalgarh area of Kishanganj in the 1960s after migrating from Bangladesh. | Photo Credit: Amarnath Tewary
A few steps away, on the other side of the only pond in the area, 85-year-old Pochhapoti Sutradhar lives in a tin-roofed house with his three sons. She moves her beads under her cotton sari jhaap mala, prayer reading, sandalwood paste tilak cracking on wrinkled forehead.
“I remember we came to India from Sylhet (in Bangladesh) in 1964. We were in different camps in India for five years. We finally came here in 1969. We have been putting the pieces of our lives together ever since,” he says. He remembers his family crossing the border and coming to Tripura. They have five sons and two daughters, all born in India.
His eldest son died in an accident; the youngest lives in Kerala with his family; the other three work as masons; As for their daughters
“Yes, 50-60 of my relatives from my father’s side, my mother’s side and my wife’s family are still in different parts of Bangladesh. I had a video chat with one of them just two weeks ago, but I haven’t been able to reach them since then,” he says. “I know through my sons, grandchildren, daughters, daughters-in-law that something is wrong in Bangladesh today. I fear for the safety of my family members.” She continues moving the beads, faster this time, still under the cover of her cotton sari. He also prays to God to protect them. His third daughter-in-law, Jayanti Sutradhar, says the networks are blocked.
Almost all households of Nepalgarh speak Bengali at home and Hindi outside. Some households have cars; There are more bikes though. Life was still a struggle.
A signboard in Kishanganj. | Photo Credit: Amarnath Tewary
“When we settled here, the area was outside the city and covered with bushes and weeds, but today look we have concrete strips and street lights. Thanks to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar,” adds Saha. He points to a piece of land adjacent to his house, which he bought a few years ago. He grows spring onions and a few vegetables. “This is a temporary respite from my retirement days,” he adds with a hearty laugh.
“What is happening in Bangladesh is not good. The killing of any human being is unacceptable,” says Saha.
According to the 2022 census of Bangladesh, the Hindu population is approximately 13.13 million, which is approximately 7.95% of the country’s total population.
amarnath.tewary@thehindu.co.in
Edited by Sunalini Mathew.
