Chief minister Mamata Banerjee today lambasted the Centre after the Haryana government wrote letters to the district magistrates of several districts seeking information of 52 Bengali-speaking migrant workers living there.
The letters have been sent to the DMs of Malda, Murshidabad, South and North Dinajpur, Nadia and North 24-Parganas, she said. She said the Haryana government wants to know the details of 52 persons.
“I do not know what is going on in our country. We have 1.50 crore non-Bengali speaking workers in Bengal but we have accepted them and never consider them as aliens,” she said.
Coming down heavily on the BJP, she said: “The saffron party must be living in fool’s paradise if they think by manipulating the electoral roll they can win election in Bengal. They have won the Assembly elections in Maharastra and Delhi by manipulating the voters’ list. They are following the advice of wrong people and they will have to pay a very heavy price for playing divisive politics,” she maintained. She said detention camps have been set up in Assam, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, where the Bengali-speaking migrant workers have been put up.”
Miss Banerjee said our Constitution has “given us the right to move. We can go anywhere in the country. Who are they to stop our movement,” she questioned.
Miss Banerjee reiterated that these migrant workers are skilled labours and have been hired by different companies.
Without naming the chief minister of Assam, she said: “What audacity has he got to send a notice written in Assamese language to the couple in Alipurduar. He does not have the guts to go to Manipur where trouble has become a regular event. Mind your own business and do not poke your nose in the affairs of Bengal,” she remarked.
She urged people not to get scared as she will always stand by them. “I am not against any language. But will not tolerate attack and harassment of Bengali-speaking migrant workers. I will resist any attack on any language. This is unacceptable and Trinamul Congress will organise protest movements,” she said.