So, like, there was this dude named Sarbojoya from Jessore who used to miss his parents a lot when he was a kid. He thought he would never see them again! But as he grew up, he kinda lost their image from his mind. Now, no one’s face comes to my mind. It’s like, whatever, I don’t need to keep them in my mind. They don’t even remember me. Both of them have gone their separate ways. Now I gotta stop all this daydreaming and stand on my own two feet,” said little Sarbojoya back in the day.
When Sarbojoya was like six or seven, his mom married someone else and left him alone with his dad. His dad also left him one day, abandoning him. He begged on the streets, crossed the border to India, became a Christian missionary, sought shelter in a government shelter home, and struggled to learn reading and writing – it was a tough time in young Sarbojoya’s life.
When Sarbojoya was talking with the Rights Jessore office, his mom was there too. She came from Gaibandha. She’s currently with her husband. Sarbojoya’s dad’s house is in Netrakona. To lift the mood, Sarbojoya responded to his mom, “She says she’s my mom. I can’t really picture her face.”
The Rights Jessore office got Sarbojoya’s information from the shelter home in Kolkata. Later, they found the necessary documents and sent them to India. After getting the permission to return, Sarbojoya was sent back to Bangladesh by the Indian authorities through the special travel permit of the Bangladeshi Deputy High Commission in Kolkata.
On the evening of January 30, several more Bangladeshis (who had been smuggled into India) were brought back to the country through the Benapole port. But there was no mom, dad, or any relative there to welcome him. The Rights Jessore took him in and kept him in the shelter home in Jessore.
With tears in his eyes, Sarbojoya said, “My mom, dad, and I used to live in Dhaka. My dad used to work as a clerk. After my dad broke his leg in an accident, my mom married someone else a few days later. She took me along when she left. She used to feel sorry for my dad, so she left me with him. My dad used to beg with me on the streets. One day, he left me alone and went away.”
“I became helpless. To survive, I begged on the streets. When I got a bit older, I teamed up with a slightly older girl friend. She begged too. One day, we took a train from Dhaka to Joydevpur, then a bus to Benapole. We entered India by crossing the border.
We went to beg at the Shyaldah station. After a few days, two European missionaries took us to the Christian missionary Loretto. Those children who do not have parents are here. A week later, the police took me from Loretto to the government shelter home ‘Sukanya’ in Kolkata.
Sarbojoya is currently 20 years old. His education started at the ‘Sukanya Vidya Peeth’ at the shelter home. After passing the ninth grade, he was admitted to Rabindra Mukta Vidyalaya in 2022. From here, after completing his secondary education, he was admitted to Sarda Mission Vivekananda Bhavan. He used to study and do his writing from the hostel of Bethune College.
Sarbojoya said, “I have learned martial arts, Rabindra dance, Jumma dance, yoga, dance movement therapy, karate (green belt), self-defense, kabaddi, badminton, and football. He is also quite proficient in performing arts and visual arts.
When Sarbojoya was advancing in his mission to become well-established, he was sent back to Bangladesh. If he did not want to return to the country, the Sukanya Child Welfare Officer told him, ‘Once your nationality is confirmed, we can no longer keep you here. You have to go back to your country.’
When Sarbojoya was talking with the Rights Jessore office, his mom was sitting by his side. She said she would marry her daughter off to him. Sarbojoya was not really into it. Before leaving alone, the mom placed her hand on Sarbojoya’s head and prayed for him to fulfill his mother’s wish. Before leaving, she asked him to take just one picture with the girl!
Binoy Krishna Malik, the Executive Director of Rights Jessore, said, “Sarbojoya’s situation was quite complicated. He was quite young when he was separated from his family. Because of this, there is no memory of his mom, dad, or siblings. After his first visit to Kolkata, the information they received from him was used to locate his mom and bring her to Rights Jessore. It took a long time. By that time, the girl had progressed a lot in her studies. Even after returning home, she couldn’t recognize her mom.
He said, “I got my national identity card and passport done at the shelter home in Jessore. After learning to read and write, and dreaming of standing on my own feet, Sarbojoya stepped into his preferred field of education in Kolkata on April 22. Even on that day, no relative bid him farewell at the Benapole port. The representatives of Sukanya accepted him from the Rights Jessore office after bidding him farewell.”
So, Sarbojoya’s journey continues as he pursues his education and strives to build a better future for himself.