Bengali citizens harassed during drive to identify illegal migrants: CPI(M) leaders write to Shah
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New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) leaders Brinda Karat and Anurag Saxena on Friday wrote to Home Minister Amit Shah, and said they have received several complaints of "harassment of genuine citizens" during the ongoing exercise for "identification of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants" on grounds that they speak Bengali.
In a letter addressed to the home minister, the CPI(M) leaders said they heard complaints of human rights violations, harassment and extortion.
Karat, a former MP and special invitee to CPI(M) Politburo, and Saxena, Delhi state secretary of the party, said they, along with a team, visited Delhi's Bawana JJ colony and met several of the complainants.
"We were shocked to find blatant violation of minimum human rights, harassment and in some cases, corruption amounting to extortion," the CPI(M) leaders alleged.
They noted that the exercise was being carried out by Delhi Police and several other agencies under directions from the Union Home Ministry.
Listing out the cases, they gave cited the story of one Md Nizamuddin who said he was from Godda district, Jharkhand, and had migrated to Delhi several decades ago.
"He was allotted a plot by DDA in 2004 in Bawana JJ colony and presently resides there. On July 5, a team of police personnel from the local thana went to his house and accused him of helping a Bangladeshi to get illegal papers.
"He explained to the police that the tenant was staying there three years ago and he had no contact and had no idea of the person's whereabouts," the CPI(M) leaders said.
They said he was taken to the police station again on July 6, and also allegedly beaten up. While he was released later, the CPI(M) leaders said they were told photographs of the family had been uploaded on a police site.
"All such photos should be deleted from police records as the family are bonafide Indian citizens who have committed no crime. Also, action should be taken against those who beat Nizamuddin in custody," they said.
The letter also gave the example of one Sajan Saudagar Das from the jhuggi settlement in Bawana C block, who was picked up by the police on May 6 and taken to Pritampura thana. The CPI(M) leaders alleged he was badly beaten by two policemen who abused him saying that he should "confess" that he was a Bangladeshi.
They added that the police later said he was picked up "by mistake", and had picked him up as they received information that he was speaking in Bengali, the CPI(M) leaders said.
Another example cited by the leaders mentioned three women aged between 60 and 70 years who came to India as children, got married and have families here.
The letter also gave examples from Vivekanand camp in Chanakyapuri, where they alleged police took away ID documents from Bengalis and were returned later after intervention by some activists.
"The process of identification of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh in the capital of India is an example of violation of minimum human rights. In the process, genuine Indian citizens are being targeted on grounds of language and religion. Is it now a crime in India to speak Bengali?" the CPI(M) leaders questioned.
"Further, are all Bengali speaking Muslim citizens of India to be treated as criminals and illegal immigrants? We would like to remind you that 26 per cent of the population of West Bengal are Bengali speaking Muslims." they said.
The CPI(M) leaders also said there are international norms for deportation of illegal immigrants. "The present methods of identification in Delhi violate all such norms," they added.
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Karnataka Health Dept bars leave for staff amid ASHA workers’ strike starting Aug 12
Bengaluru, Aug 11 (PTI): In response to a planned three-day strike by ASHA workers starting August 12, the Karnataka Health Department on Monday issued a notice prohibiting all officers and staff from taking leave during the protest period, except in cases of medical emergencies.
Accredited Social Health Activists workers are demanding the fixed honorarium of Rs 10,000 promised by the state government in January. They have announced a continuous state-level protest from August 12 to 14.
The notice stated, “Information about ASHA workers absent from duty within district limits will be collected daily from primary health centres, compiled at the district level, and submitted to the commissionerate by 3 pm during the protest.”
The Health Department also urged community health officers, primary health protection officers, health inspectors, and Anganwadi workers to cooperate in ensuring that health services to the public remain uninterrupted.
