Protect Bengal workers facing violence in Odisha: Yusuf to Shah
Times of India | 3 May 2025
Kolkata: Trinamool Congress has written to Union home minister Amit Shah, requesting his immediate intervention and outlining a four-point plan to protect labourers from Bengal facing violence in BJP-governed states, particularly Odisha.
In a strongly worded letter, Berhampore MP Yusuf Pathan expressed his concerns about labourers who were forced to flee the neighbouring state in fear for their lives.
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"I write to you with grave concern regarding the alarming rise in incidents of violence against migrant workers from Bengal, particularly those hailing from my constituency Berhampore, Murshidabad, and surrounding districts, who recently returned from Odisha after being subjected to targeted attacks," Pathan wrote in his letter, dated April 27.
He said "several organised groups allegedly launched systematic assaults on labourers from West Bengal... Many were assaulted at night, robbed of their mobile phones and earnings, had their Aadhaar cards destroyed, and were forcibly evicted from their accommodations. Disturbingly, similar incidents occurred in Aug-Sept 2024 as well."
The letter highlighted the targeting of workers based on regional identity, particularly those from the Muslim community, describing this as a violation of "the fundamental principles of unity, integrity, and fraternity enshrined in our Constitution."
"I urge the Ministry of Home Affairs to, one, direct the Odisha state administration to take prompt and stringent action against the perpetrators; two, ensure the safety and security of all migrant workers across the affected districts; three, constitute a central fact-finding team to investigate the root causes and scale of the violence; and four, provide necessary relief and rehabilitation support to the workers returning to West Bengal," Pathan wrote.
The MP emphasised that this situation transcended ordinary law and order issues, and was "a matter of human dignity and the constitutional right to work and reside in any part of our federal nation."