'What will we do back home?’: Gurgaon’s buzzing Bengali Market falls silent; 4,000 leave after police crackdown

GURGAON: The narrow lanes of Bengali Market near South City, once bustling with life and commerce, now echo with an eerie silence. In less than a week, an estimated 4,000 residents — many who had called this place a home for decades — have vanished, leaving behind their livelihoods and dreams.

The exodus began after cops in plainclothes detained some 25 men in a sudden raid to identify Bangladeshi immigrants and Rohingya living illegally here.

What followed was a wave of fear and uncertainty that emptied this vibrant settlement — home to drivers, maids, fish sellers, and cooks mainly from West Bengal.

"We are people who work to eat. What will we do back home? We can't do farming. It will be very difficult for us to go back and start a life again," said Mohammed Zulfiqar Ali, a driver who has lived in the NCR city for 25 years.

His story mirrors that of thousands of others who built their lives here, with children enrolled in local schools and steady jobs supporting their families.

Residents alleged that police conducted arbitrary detentions without any proper verification. "They don't ask for IDs. They just pick us up and start beating," said Beauty, a resident for 14 years. She alleged that her teenaged nephew was so severely beaten up that "he cannot even walk". He has since gone back to Bengal.

Over the past few days, nearly 250 people have been detained across the city, with four community centres converted into holding facilities in Badshapur, Sector 10A, Sector 40, and Manesar.

"When they asked us to show IDs, we did so. But they just said, ‘Brother, just sit in the car and we'll go'," said Mohammed Zulfiqar Ali.

While some were released from the detention centres in 5-6 hours, others returned home after a day. But those detained alleged torture and humiliation. "His whole skin peeled off," a resident claimed about a neighbour.

The fear, Zulfiqar claimed, was so profound that he deleted video evidence of the beatings from his phone, fearing further repercussions.

The sudden displacement has created a financial crisis for many. With monthly rents in the city between Rs 3,000 and Rs 7,000, and no savings or employment prospects in their villages back home, families face an uncertain future.

"We can feed our children in our villages, but we cannot build their future," said a woman, referring to limited educational opportunities in rural areas. "We don't have anything at home. We earn here, eat, and just pass our days, educating our children a little," she added.

While some, like Abhi Rahman, a tea shop owner for nine years, plan to return "when things are settled", most see no immediate hope of coming back. The holding centres currently house hundreds of people, mainly ragpickers employed by sanitation contractors, as authorities verify their documentation.