Thousands of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants arrived in Pakistan in the 1980s, while Bangladesh was battling extreme poverty.
[3] By 1995, continuous migration of Bangladeshis crossed the 2,500,000 mark. During the administration of
Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, some top advisers became concerned with the large Bangladeshi migrant population, afraid they could become the second largest group in Karachi after Urdu-speaking
Muhajir people and disturb sensitive demographics. Accordingly, Bhutto ordered a crackdown and deportation on Bangladeshi immigrants. Benazir Bhutto's action strained and created tensions in
Bangladesh–Pakistan relations, with
Khaleda Zia, who was in power in
Dhaka during the time, refusing to accept the deportees and reportedly sending two planeloads back towards Pakistan and Muslim political parties in Pakistan criticising Bhutto and dubbing the crackdown as anti-Islamic. She was ultimately forced to abandon the order.
[4][5]