Migration, borders, and security discourses in the time of COVID-19 : the case of migration from Bangladesh to India

Abstract

Migration has taken place throughout human history and continues to do so in the 21st century. In many recent instances, the states to which migrants are headed have framed migration as a security issue, i.e. a threat to their citizens’ livelihood, safety, and cultural identity. Discourses that securitize migration, thus criminalizing immigrants, are not unique to the US and the EU, or to South-North migration: they pertain to South-South migration as well. This article draws attention to a case of migration and border securitization from the global South: the one concerning India-bound informal migration originating from Bangladesh. This, incidentally, is also the country of origin of large numbers of migrants that have made their way to Europe during the last decade. This article asks what the consequences of a securitized approach to the framing and managing of migration are, and whether they are worth the costs or are at all affordable for the countries involved. The article aims to assess the potential impact that securitized discourses have on Indo-Bangladeshi relations, and on the domestic politics of India and Bangladesh. To do so, it reviews the processes of securitiziation of the India-Bangladesh border and criminalization of Bangladeshi migrants in India’s contemporary domestic politics with reference to recent (2019-2021) events and current affairs.