attempted to cross the Pakistan border in the afternoon of 17 June 1971, were stopped by Indian BSF and taken back to an Indian camp in Hili. An Advocate from Comilla, who returned from Agartala, revealed in a statement to the press on 22 June 1971, that East Pakistani refugees in India were being screened and those who wanted to return were stopped from doing so and even threatened to be killed.
In an interview at Dacca on 14 July 1971, a visiting Member of Australian Parliament, Mr. Leonard Stanley Reid, said that he had seen the situation on the border from both sides and the responsibility lies with India to remove tension which is preventing the return of the Pakistani national who had gone across the border to India. Mr. Reid added that he had visited a number of Reception Centers set up by the East
Pakistan Government and he found that adequate facilities for accommodation and medical care were being made available to the returning people and every effort was being made for their quick rehabilitation. Home-Coming Progressing Steadily
Despite hindrances put by various interested parties across the border, displaced Pakistanis-both Muslims and Hindus-are returning to East Pakistan in increasing numbers through recognized and unrecognized routes. But many of them are preferring unrecognized routes and travel during night to avoid obstruction by the Indians and their agents. This explains the discrepancy in the number of people actually registered at the Reception Centers, and those announced in Government statements as having returned to East Pakistan.
In the last week of June 1971, 1650 more displaced Pakistanis returned to their homes from across the border. Of these persons 100 re-entered Sylhet district through Katalamora BOP, 360 arrived in Dinajpur district and the rest reported at different Reception Centres. Among those who crossed over into Satkhira there were as many as 238 members of the minority community. In Rangpur, 80 per cent of the displaced Pakistanis from the district have already returned to their homes.
In other sectors too, the return of DP's continued. 700 such returnees crossed over into Chuadanga sub-division of Kushtia district. 900 more displaced persons returned, including 670 at Khanpur, Thakurgaon and Panchgar in Dinajpur district, 175 at Jhikargacha, and the rest at Satkhira and Chagachi. Among the displaced Pakistanis who reported at these Centers there were a substantial number of men, women and children of the minority community.
Indian Motives in Obstructing Return
What is India's motivation in preventing the return of these Pakistani citizens? It must be remembered that India has already received a sum of Rs. 120 million in foreign currency on the pretext of feeding these displaced persons from East Pakistan. This amount is part of Rs. 200 million in foreign exchange India is expecting to get overtly on humanitarian grounds but covertly to make good her foreign exchange deficits. Foreign news media have already reported that India is swelling the number of people in the
