Cross-border threats are not an abstract fear but a very real and pressing danger for India, and yet the country continues to hold on to the emotional foolishness of maintaining open borders with Bangladesh and Nepal. What is presented in the name of cultural ties, religious brotherhood, or centuries of shared heritage has in practice turned into one of the most serious national security vulnerabilities. The harsh truth is that India already suffers from an overload of anti-national forces within its boundaries, and in such a fragile environment, it is completely illogical to allow unchecked inflow from outside.
India is home to a complex mixture of hostile actors—radicalized elements, separatists, ideologically driven extremists, and organized crime syndicates. These are not mere theoretical enemies; they have demonstrated time and again how easily they can exploit loopholes in governance and law enforcement. From terror networks using sleeper cells to counterfeit currency operations weakening the economy, from drug cartels poisoning youth to illegal political funding networks, the evidence of internal enemies is overwhelming. In such a scenario, what sense does it make to leave two of the most porous borders open, inviting even more trouble into the country?
The porous Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Nepal borders are not simply symbolic—they are active corridors of infiltration. Disguised as workers, students, or visiting relatives, many slip in unnoticed. Their identities cannot be verified, their loyalties cannot be trusted, and their long-term plans remain invisible until they strike. History has already shown that terror attacks and organized crimes rarely happen without groundwork of sleeper cells, safe houses, and logistical networks. By the time their activities surface, it is already too late.
The scale of the problem is not hidden; it is officially recorded. In Assam alone, 165,531 persons have been identified as illegal immigrants under the Assam Accord’s criteria up to December 2024, of which 132,661 entered after the 1971 cutoff date. Out of these, only about 30,115 have been deported. Foreigners’ Tribunals in Assam have declared 165,992 individuals as irregular immigrants as of January 2025. These are not fringe figures; they show how deep the infiltration has gone. The BSF too intercepted nearly 14,361 Bangladeshi nationals between 2019 and April 2022, mostly along the South Bengal border. In Tripura, the BSF arrested 744 infiltrators in 2023 alone, including 112 Rohingyas, a group whose radical links have been flagged internationally.
The tools of infiltration are also becoming sophisticated. In Murshidabad, four Bangladeshi nationals were arrested with fake Aadhaar cards, showing how easily Indian documentation is being forged. In 2024, about 120-140 Bangladeshi nationals were stopped from simultaneously crossing into West Bengal at multiple points. Assam’s police in 2024–25 detected 54 illegal immigrants (deporting 45 already) and began proposals to integrate biometric verification in all identity documents to curb fraud. The open Nepal border too has been exploited for espionage: in May 2025, Delhi Police arrested Ansarul Mian Ansari, a Nepali-origin ISI agent, who used the Nepal route to slip into India and pass sensitive documents to Pakistan’s handlers.
The pattern is consistent: illegal migration, fake documentation, smuggling, drug trafficking, arms movement, and even direct espionage have all been tied to these borders. These are not isolated events but a repeated cycle. Even the BSF, acknowledging the seriousness, has begun deploying body-worn cameras and biometric tools at vulnerable posts to record fingerprints and iris scans of those intercepted. These measures show that the state machinery is aware of the threat—yet political will remains divided and often compromised by short-term vote bank interests.
It is here that the question of emotional foolishness arises. The argument for open borders is usually sentimental: shared families, shared culture, shared religions, and shared histories. But national security cannot be decided by nostalgia. Compassion without caution is negligence. No country that values sovereignty leaves its borders unregulated. Even the closest allies in the world—the U.S. and Canada, for example—have strict border controls. Europe’s Schengen openness is based on advanced biometric tracking and deep intelligence coordination, not blind trust. India, by contrast, has chosen sentiment over security.
Worse, the open door is not only being used by poor migrants but also by those with dangerous intentions. Deep-state operators do not arrive waving flags or carrying bombs. They arrive quietly, sometimes as clerics, sometimes as NGO workers, sometimes as students or businessmen. They build networks, spread propaganda, and wait. When needed, they are activated—whether to fund riots, spread disinformation, or provide safe passage to terrorists. Such infiltration is more dangerous than a single violent attack because it corrodes society from within, unnoticed until the damage is irreversible.
The evidence is now too heavy to ignore. Illegal migration has already altered the demography of border districts in Assam, West Bengal, and Tripura. Entire constituencies have shifted, with political parties openly courting illegal immigrants as a captive vote bank. Fake currency rackets and drug cartels exploit the porous terrain. Terror networks have been traced back to routes through both Bangladesh and Nepal. Every statistic, every arrest, every foiled attempt screams one message: open borders are not friendship, they are an invitation to chaos.
India must therefore move beyond emotion and act with realism. Borders need regulated fencing where possible, biometric verification systems, and strict permits for cross-movement. Illegal settlers must be identified and deported with due process, not shielded for electoral advantage. The state must invest in surveillance technology and strengthen intelligence cooperation with both Nepal and Bangladesh—but cooperation must come from a position of security, not blind trust. The first duty of a government is to protect its own citizens, not to indulge sentimentality at the cost of national safety.
India stands at a dangerous crossroads. Continuing with the illusion of open borders means nurturing slow demographic change, infiltration of criminals, spread of deep-state propaganda, and future terror strikes. Choosing hard security measures means safeguarding sovereignty and protecting citizens. The evidence is overwhelming, the logic is simple, and the urgency is undeniable. Keeping borders open with Bangladesh and Nepal is not generosity—it is national self-sabotage. And the longer this foolishness continues, the heavier the price India will be forced to pay.
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Terrorism