Sixty-eight years after partition India and Bangladesh finally settled the contentious issue of enclaves which is part of the larger historical border dispute between the two countries. Known in the international media as the "strangest border dispute" because of geographical oddities such as the only third order enclave in the world, the land swap of enclaves is being hailed as another "freedom at midnight" by the media. Moving away from such broad generalisations and taking a realistic look at the ground reality suggest that the situation is far more complex than it may seem on the surface.

The Land Boundary Agreement 1974, which was signed by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Indira Gandhi, was never ratified by India. After the historic passage of the LBA in May this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Bangladesh early June, and exchanged the Instruments of Ratification of the LBA with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. At the stroke of midnight on July 31, the two countries began the exchange of more than 150 pockets of land, giving more than 50,000 people the right to citizenship. 111 Indian enclaves, with nearly 37,000 inhabitants, became part of Bangladesh while 51 Bangladeshi enclaves, with 14,000 inhabitants, became part of India.  

The enclave issue can be traced back to the drawing of the boundary demarcation line between India and Pakistan under the 1947 Radcliffe Award, which ignored these existing pockets of territories that have existed since pre-colonial times. Prior to 1971, neither India nor Pakistan recognised inhabitants of these enclaves, otherwise known as chit-dwellers, as citizens, rendering these people deprived of basic rights. Things remained unchanged even after Bangladesh's independence in 1971. Therefore, the mere swap of enclaves between India and Bangladesh is insufficient to improve the miserable socio-economic conditions of chit-dwellers developed over the decades, and there is much more to be done to improve the situation in the enclaves. 

Since 1947, due to the absence of political and legal machinery, chit-dwellers came up with their own system of land titling and distribution. Due to the lack of a standardised system, different land registration systems in the enclaves necessarily meant an asymmetry of information, which in turn gave way to complex problems on the ground. Former inhabitants of Indian enclaves, who are now Bangladeshi, continue to face encroachment upon their lands by land grabbers. For instance, a recent report published in this daily revealed how residents of Banshpacha in Lalmonirhat Sadar Upazila, with their newfound citizenship, have begun to collectively protest the actions of land grabbers. They demanded that 160 out of 217 acres of land in the former enclave, under the illegal possession of identified land grabbers, be freed. Due to the fact that chit-dwellers had no legal rights and land titles all these years, land grabbers and opportunists were able to seize and/or fraudulently sell tracts of land belonging to enclave people. In this regard, the issue of proper land titles needs to be given due attention to ensure the smooth effectuation of the Enclave Agreement.   

India hails "security as the prime concern", now that the swapping of the enclaves is underway. Pradip Bhattacharya, Congress MP from West Bengal and Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, stated, "Security in those enclaves which are now part of India is of topmost priority to check illegal entrants from Bangladesh or JMB modules operating in Bengal." His concerns are echoed by many who believe "anti-national elements" infiltrating the porous border pose a grave threat because of potential "anti-India activities." Coochbehar district magistrate P Ulaganathan said, "Right now we have few more companies of BSF in Coochbehar district and they will be staying for quite some time. The concern is not regarding those 979 people who will be coming here as they will have proper permits. But after this process gets over, the issue of safety and security and ensuring that no unruly elements make its way to enclaves is to be looked into." As India tightens security on the ground, the Bangladeshi government must take heed in order to provide chit-dwellers with the required identity documents and other facilities so that they don't attempt to cross over illegally, which is a possibility if there is growing dissatisfaction among them.

Tackling the issue of land rights of the enclave people is of paramount importance. Land rights are a central issue, and the government needs to come up with an effective system for land allotment and registration to provide protection and keep the threat of land grabbers at bay. There is also the issue of untitled and disputed property, which should legally be recognised as "evacuee property." Evacuee property includes any kind of property that belongs to an evacuee as an owner, beneficiary, trustee, etc. Legislation regarding land distribution, allotment, titling, and transfer can help clearly lay down procedures in dealing with land disputes and so on.  

It needs to be understood that the problem of enclaves does not end with their exchange. Freedom for chit-dwellers means more than just attaining citizenship. Valid identity documents and access to basic amenities such as health and education must be ensured for the enclave people, for whom acquiring these services has historically meant resorting to false identities. The finance minister's proposed allocation of Tk. 200 crore for development in the enclaves is commendable; but it needs to be ensured that real development work is being done with taxpayers' money to improve the draconian conditions of the enclave people. If these people—who have remained stateless and deprived of their basic rights for decades, including the right to legally travel outside their enclaves to reach their state of citizenship—are to be rehabilitated, then the Bangladeshi government must be proactive in arming these people with the wherewithal to exercise their social, political and legal rights. 

The writer is a journalist at The Daily Star.