Himanta accuses TMC of shielding Bangladeshi Muslim infiltrators
2
Guwahati:
Assam
CM
Himanta Biswa Sarma
on Tuesday accused Trinamool of portraying his govt's firm stance against illegal infiltration of Bangladeshi Muslims as anti-Bengali. He claimed
TMC
's alleged attempt was nothing but a desperate ploy to shield Muslim infiltrators from the neighbouring country.
In a post on his X handle, Sarma said, "Assam has been waging a relentless war against illegal infiltration of Bangladeshi Muslims for several decades. The recent attempt by the @AITCofficial to distort my media remarks and portray our stand as anti-Bengali is nothing but a desperate ploy to shield Muslim infiltrators from Bangladesh — whose very presence threatens to alter the demographic fabric of our nation."
"Let it be made absolutely clear: in Assam, every Indian citizen — including Bengali-speaking people — fully understands our position and supports our uncompromising stand against illegal Muslim immigration from Bangladesh," he added.
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TMC slammed Sarma for his remark that "writing Bengali as mother tongue in the Census documents will quantify the number of foreigners in Assam". In a post on X, the party said that Bengali was the seventh-most spoken language in the world and added, "… under BJP' rule, Bengali-speaking Indians are subjected to racial profiling, targeted harassment and systematic persecution." The party further said Sarma disgraced the CM's office by branding Bengalis as "illegal Bangladeshis".
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"He must apologise immediately."
In response to Sarma, TMC spokesperson, Debangshu Bhattacharya posted on X saying, " Read between the lines, people. This is @himantabiswa's last-ditch attempt to veil his XENOPHOBIA and LINGUISTIC CHAUVINISM behind communal smokescreens. You claim your Govt only targets "illegal Bangladeshi Muslims". But in the final NRC list, out of the 19.6 lakh people excluded, 12 lakh were Bengali Hindus.
Was their faith the problem too? Or was it their language? You say your crusade isn't against Bengalis.
Then how do you explain the fact that all but four of the 30 people who died in Assam's detention centres were Bengali-speaking?Your track record shows only one unifying marker of persecution: Bengali. This isn't about illegal immigration. This is about your PATHOLOGICAL HATRED for a language, a people, and a culture."
Meanwhile, Assam BJP claimed over 10 districts in the state had become Muslim-majority and the changing demography was a major cause for concern. Districts such as Dhubri have more than 90% population belonging to a particular community, the party said. "It is not only a demographic change but also a serious threat to indigenous people of the state," a party source claimed.
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