The 'Bangladeshi' question

Rajya Sabha MP and West Bengal Migrant Workers’ Welfare Board chairman Samirul Islam accuses BJP-ruled states and Central agencies of both prejudice and ignorance in the recent hounding of Bengali-speaking people, living and working outside West Bengal, as illegal Bangladeshis.

He speaks to Sourabh Sen on the distrust driving the Indian State to harass its own citizens and the refusal to acknowledge documents issued by the Election Commission and the UIDAI as valid. The matter is now before the Supreme Court with the next hearing on 10 September. Excerpts:

How serious is the hounding of Indian citizens from West Bengal working in other states as ‘illegal Bangladeshis’?

We have received hundreds of complaints but the government of India needs to examine just a few cases of these so-called infiltrators to realise how ridiculous this is.

The latest case is that of Amir Sheikh (19) from Malda. He was picked up by the Rajasthan Police, detained, brought to the border and with the help of the BSF pushed into Bangladesh. When the boy’s father learnt of it, he moved a habeas corpus petition in the high court where the lawyer representing the BSF said the boy was trying to get into India, was apprehended and handed over to WB Police. The teenager has since been reunited with his family. But who will investigate the truth?

Then there is the case of Sunali, who is eight-months pregnant, and her husband — both rag pickers in Delhi — which is already before the high court. They too were pushed into Bangladesh by the BSF. The Supreme Court has asked the HC to deal with the case expeditiously. We have verified that they are from Birbhum in West Bengal.

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What prompted the migrants’ welfare board to approach the Supreme Court and what did you seek by way of relief?

For several months, there were reports from different states — most of them BJP-ruled but some from even Opposition-ruled states — on the crackdown on migrant workers speaking in Bangla. We found that many of them were actually migrant workers from West Bengal who had shifted for work. They were being detained and harassed on suspicion of being Bangladeshis.

Even after they produced documents — Aadhaar, voter card and in some cases even passports and PAN cards — the police was not convinced. They were branded as ‘illegal Bangladeshis’, sent to detention camps, where many were tortured. Some were let off after they agreed to pay a hefty bribe.

However, no information was shared with the government of West Bengal. Even when we contacted these state governments with information after physical verification of the bona fides of these people by district magistrates or superintendents of police, we were told that it was not good enough.

We were told that their mother tongue was Bengali and therefore they must be Bangladeshis. We found that many workers, including women and children, had been pushed into Bangladesh. Those who were let off and returned to West Bengal spoke of their harrowing experience. They have lost their livelihood and their children’s education is disrupted.

The welfare board is an official body — the only one of its kind as far as I know. When we realised our letters were not being replied to and our concerns remained unaddressed, we filed a petition before the Supreme Court on 7 August. I am also one of the petitioners. The governments of Odisha, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Haryana have been made respondents along with the Central and West Bengal governments.

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Our plea is that these state governments must inform why Indian citizens from West Bengal are being hounded.

The solicitor-general has informed the Supreme Court about the large number of Bangladeshi infiltrators living in India. Are you denying the claim?

The Central government has the authority, and indeed it is its duty, to take steps it deems necessary against foreign nationals living illegally. Our contention is this: why are Indian citizens, with families and in some cases property in West Bengal, being harassed? The language spoken by them cannot be the basis for identifying them as Bangladeshis. It is like saying that because Punjabi is also spoken in Pakistan, all Punjabi speakers must be Pakistanis.

More than 90 per cent of the 2,200 km border India shares with Bangladesh has electrified fencing. The responsibility to guard the rest lies with the BSF, a Central government agency. Its jurisdiction is not just the border post but also a 25-kilometre area inside the border. If there is large-scale infiltration, the Central government must explain and take responsibility.

Targeting Indian citizens, blaming the WB government for infiltration and politicising the issue before the assembly election are insidious attempts to broaden the communal divide.

How easy is it to acquire documents like Aadhaar and EPIC in West Bengal?

The documents you have mentioned are issued after verification by Central agencies. So, it is not for me or the West Bengal government to answer that question.

Sourabh Sen is a Kolkata-based independent writer and commentator