IOR/L/PS/12/380A

The file contains correspondence regarding the deportation of three Polish men (Oligierd Stolyho, Adam Backer and Josef Bekerman), one Lithuanian man (Bronistew Bogussewier), one Ukrainian man (Iwan Basileffsk) and one Russian woman (Tatiana Chinnova) from the Persian Border to British Indian territory at the beginning of the Second World War.

The main correspondence is between:

• the Government of India, External Affairs Department to Tehran

• the Secretary of State for India

• the Senior Assistant Director, Intelligence, Government of India, Quetta

• the Director, Intelligence Bureau (Home Department), Government of India, Simla

• the Secretary to the Agent to the Governor-General in Baluchistan, Ziarat

• the Polish Consulate General in India

• the Additional Deputy Secretary to the Government of India in the External Affairs Department

Detailed are the British Indian Government’s concerns regarding national security leading to the arrest and detention of the group. Attributed to this is a belief that Bekerman is German and Jewish, and conflicting reports from Vernon Smith, an American woman who came in contact with the refugees. Also detailed is the Polish Consulate General in India’s wish to facilitate their release, and his assessment of their legitimacy once they had arrived in Bombay, India.

Included are statements from the five men; preliminary (folios 3 to 7) and revised (folios 9 to 15) following alleged inconsistencies in the former, and a statement from Chinnova (folios 19 to 21). These contain personal information and include the motivations and circumstances which led to their arrival at the Persian border, and a description of items in their possession.