Odisha: BJP slams Mahua Moitra over Bengali immigrants remarks
Bhubaneswar, Dec 3
Amid the ongoing crackdown on illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya immigrants staying in Odisha, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday slammed Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra for alleging that the Nayagarh police had “illegally thrown out†four Bengali immigrants from the district.
Taking a sharp dig at the Trinamool MP, BJP spokesperson Anil Biswal on Wednesday said, "It is unclear why MP Mahua Moitra has so much sympathy for Bangladeshi infiltrators. The people of Odisha do not need advice from any anti-national elements. The Trinamool Congress has always protected illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators and has endangered the internal security of the country."
Biswal said that the Odisha government is determined to remove illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators from the state and that the state police are responsibly and effectively carrying out their duty.
"The Trinamool MP should focus on her own state. Odisha's matters will be understood and managed by the people of Odisha. Do not level false allegations and damage the cordial relationship between Odisha and West Bengal. All Bangladeshi infiltrators in Odisha will be identified and removed," he added.
Meanwhile, senior Congress MLA Ashok Kumar Das said that the government should have collected proper data before taking such a sensitive decision. The Congress MLA also claimed that not everyone who speaks Bengali is a Bangladeshi.
"It is wrong to brand every Bengali-speaking person as a Bangladeshi. Only those who are criminals or illegally staying should be identified. Genuine residents and workers must not be harassed," Das asserted.
He further added that a fair survey and proper documentation must be done, and those who are genuinely staying and working should be allowed to remain.
Notably, Moitra earlier in the day claimed that four immigrants from neighbouring West Bengal were illegally thrown out of the district by the Nayagarh police on November 27.
"Attention @DGPOdisha @spnayagarh -- you have illegally thrown out 4 Bengali-speaking Indian citizens from Nayagarh district simply because they were Bengalis. There are lakhs of Odia cooks, gardeners, plumbers and others working in Bengal whom we treat with love and respect. You will pay for your actions. Watch out," Moitra wrote on her X handle.
In a video message shared on her X handle, she claimed that the four poor Bengali migrants hail from Sagarpara village in the Jalangi Assembly constituency, Domkal subdivision of Murshidabad district in West Bengal, and had been living and earning a livelihood in the Nayagarh district for the past 18 years. Some of their fathers had also been working in Nayagarh earlier.
The Trinamool MP further warned that she would initiate legal action against the Odisha DGP and Nayagarh SP S. Susree over the issue.
— IANS
Reader Comments
The Congress MLA has a point. We must be very careful not to harass genuine Indian citizens who are Bengali-speaking. A proper, humane survey is needed. You can't just throw people out based on language. This creates unnecessary fear and division.
Mahua Moitra should focus on the mess in West Bengal first. Why is she always defending suspicious elements? If these people have been there for 18 years, they should have proper documents. No documents means illegal. Simple.
As an Odia, I appreciate the government's stance. We have our own issues with unemployment and resources. But we must also be compassionate. The process should be transparent and fair. Harassing poor labourers who are Indians is not right either.
Watching from outside, this seems like a complex issue. The language used by the BJP spokesperson is quite strong ("anti-national"). While border security is important, the rhetoric can sometimes overshadow the need for a careful, legal process.
There are lakhs of Odia workers in Bengal, Gujarat, Bangalore... we go everywhere for work and are treated well. The same respect should be shown to others coming to Odisha. But legality is key. Follow the law, but do it with humanity. Jai Hind!
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.