For the minorities in Bangladesh to be Pakistani or Bangladeshi national was never their choice. At the time of independence the conditions of partition were imposed from the above on them. Ofcourse they were given the option to move out. But it was never easy for the people to adjust materially and emotionally to take a spot decision to move out of the place where they were born, grew and their forefathers had lived. The Pakistan nationality was thus forced on them. The policies that were pursued and the socio-cultural and political atmosphere that was created never encouraged the minorities to stay on in Pakistan or in Bangladesh. There may not have been forceful eviction everywhere but the situations were tailored in such a way that the non-Muslim minorities 'volunteered' to migrate to India. Those who stayed on years after 1947 never accepted Pakistan nationality or Bangladesh nationality seriously and therefore they were spiritually stateless on the land of their forefathers. They, even while living in Pakistan, took India to be their motherland but India was not ready to accept them as its citizens. Their right to citizenship or to a nation is never granted and they find themselves located in a state of statelessness with no one to take care of their rights. In a situation of statelessness the minority in Bangladesh experience a perpetual decay of their self, society and culture. Their normal faculties cannot develop when they are constantly in a state of identity crisis.

The root of the present problem of statelessness of the non-Muslim minorities in bangladesh and the Bangladeshi refugees in India lies in the partition of the country and the way their right to live in the country of their choice was taken away. The problem began when they were made unwanted in their own homeland. Neither the Indian Government nor the Bangladesh Government had any control over the movement of people that followed and the consequent social economic and cultural dislocations that the non-Muslim minorities had to experience. The4 successive Bangladeshi governments have failed to create a situation where they could have lived with a sense of equality and without fear. The Indian government's response tot he refugee problem has always been lackluster. Now it is thinking of erecting fencing the 2.145 kms - long Indo-Bangladesh border and planning to send back the illegal migrants forcefully.

The mind-set of the present BJP-led Government in India can be read from its recent acts and statements. On 18 of March 1999 a tripartite meeting of the Home Ministry, the Assam Government and the representatives of All Assam Students Union (AASU) was held in New Delhi where the central government agreed to amend the Citizenship Act "to deny citizenship to children of Bangladeshis who had migrated to India between 1971 and 1986. Ofcourse, it is not for the first time that the Indian government is out to tighten up the citizenship laws; earlier also, it changed the Citizenship Act of 1956. According to the amended provision a person does not qualify for Indian citizenship only on grounds of birth, because it "stipulates that it is no longer adequate to be born in India to be granted Indian citizenship. At the time of birth either one of the parents has to be an Indian citizen for the person to become a citizen of India. Similarly, the bill changed the qualifying periods of stay within India for grant of citizenship be registration, marriage, or naturalization. The definition of "Indian origin has also been changed "excluding from its purview those people whose grand-parents, but not parents, were born in India. The AASU also demanded that the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act be replaced and a National Register for Citizens be made for establishing the identity of citizens. The Centre agreed to consider the register proposal and the scheme of photo identity cards for citizens. Among other measures the Government assured a sanction of Rs. 160 crores for sealing the border. It is doubtful whether the Central and the State governments will be able to implement such absurd proposals. But even an attempt to implement the proposed provisions will cause tension and bring harassment for the so-called illegal refugees in Assam and elsewhere. Moreover, this position is a clear departure from the original position about the citizenship issue that was spelt out at the time of Jawaharlal Nehru. In 1955, Govind Ballabh Pant, the then Home Minister of India said, "The mere fact of birth in India invests with it the right of citizenship in India … we have taken a cosmopolitan view and it is in accordance with the spirit of the times, with the temper and atmosphere which he wish to promote in the civilized world.

Repatriation is still high on the agenda of the India Government to deal with the Bangladeshi refugees. The effectiveness of the idea of repatriation is now being seriously questioned, especially after the Chakma refugee experiment. The land on which they lived in Bangladesh has been grabbed by the 'locals' there are those who benefited will not allow the repatriation to take place. And when the local people do not want them back it goes beyond the ability of Bangladesh government to create a social situation to the liking of the repatriated. No Government can stop harassment and intimidation in everyday life of the minorities. Social harmony can hardly be government-sponsored, it can succeed only when there is a consensus in its favour. Again, repatriation can not be forced on the unwilling refugees, even when the Bangladesh Government is willing to take them back. Repatriation will mean nothing unless we can create an atmosphere of their liking and create a social situation were they can live freely and fearlessly. One may doubt the ability if the Bangladesh government to fulfill the second condition. The problem of the minorities in Bangladesh has been compounded by the fact that they are scattered all over the country and are not concentrated in certain areas. As a result of this they cannot work even as a pressure group and an ethnicity-line mobilization sounds unrealistic. Had the situation been so the Indian Government could pressurise on the Bangladesh government to ensure protection of rights of the minorities in that country. There is yet another reason as to why the idea of repatriation will not work. The Bangladeshi refugees in India, even the recent immigrants are well protected by the kinship network is always there for all the refugees. The accommodative shield of this kinship net provides the new entrants with the necessary support, which they require in the initial years of their settling down in a new unknown place. It is because if this protective shield and cultural similarity that it becomes almost impossible for the administration to identify the illegal refugees and send them back. The sympathetic approach of all the political parties to the refugee problem in West Bengal is the main reason behind the trouble-free stay of the refugees.