NEW DELHI: In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury expressed concern over the harassment of Bengali-speaking students in schools across Delhi and other states.
Chowdhury in his letter asserted that the ongoing drives targeting illegal migrants are impacting legitimate Bengali-speaking residents.
In his letter, he emphasised the historical context of Bengali-speaking population movements, particularly during the British administration when the Bengal Presidency constituted the primary administrative region.
The letter noted that numerous Bengali households established permanent residence in Delhi following the transfer of the capital from Calcutta in 1911.
“After the turmoil and change of government in Bangladesh, instances have come to light where officials are singling out Bengali-speaking students in schools, questioning them about their parents and origins,” he said in his letter.
The Congress leader said that the special initiative by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, following state government instructions to identify ‘illegal migrants from Bangladesh’, has resulted in unnecessary distress for underprivileged Bengali-speaking households.
He sought the Prime Minister’s intervention to safeguard Bengali-speaking pupils and their families from improper targeting during such operations.
“I would like to impress upon you that Bengal was the largest province during British rule in India, and the Bengal Presidency was the largest; hence, a huge population of Bengali-speaking people had settled in various places under the Bengal Presidency,” he said in the letter.
“Even when the capital of British India shifted to Delhi in 1911 from Calcutta, many Bengali officials resettled and relocated to Delhi as their permanent place of residence. Recently, after the turmoil and change of government in Bangladesh, instances have come to light where officials are pinpointing Bengali-speaking pupils in various schools in Delhi and other places, harassing them and enquiring about their parents and origins,” his letter added.
“Recently, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, under directives from the state government, undertook a special initiative to identify ‘illegal migrants from Bangladesh.’ This drive targets poor Bengali-speaking students and their families but rarely proves effective in pinpointing any Bangladeshi nationals!” he further said.
“Similar harassment is taking place in many other states as well. There are numerous migrant labourers from Murshidabad, Maldah, West Dinajpur, Nadia, 24 Parganas, and other districts who regularly migrate to various Indian states, including Delhi.”
“My appeal is that the effort should always focus on identifying genuine Bangladeshi infiltrators and not harass a single Bengali migrant from West Bengal. Kindly use your discretion and authority to ensure no harassment of Bengali-speaking students and their families from West Bengal,” he concluded.
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