Month after ‘police crackdown’, Bengali migrant workers trickle back to Gurgaon for work

In July, he and several Benagli-speaking migrant workers were allegedly rounded up by the police as part of a ‘routine verification’ drive to identify Bangladeshis and Rohingya living illegally in the city. Fearing a crackdown, many workers left the city in droves — even after the police tried to allay fears, saying they were only rounding up “confirmed Bangladeshis”

When he was released on July 23 — over a week after he was picked up and kept in a ‘holding centre’ — Rabiul took his wife, Chavi Bibi (39), and two daughters home to Malda.

Once there, the family decided to get their police verification done. “Our landlord in Gurgaon and relatives strongly advised us to get it done after the police had started picking up people, so we did it out of caution,” said Rabiul.

His police verification, however, is still pending. “I’m trying to update the address on my Aadhaar card to my home in Bengal — that’s why the process is taking a while,” he explained.

He had previously changed the address to their Gurgaon residence to link it with his bank account. The family lives in Sector 66, in the slums near the Badhshapur Shamshan Ghat.

Homes of families who have still not returned to Chakkarpur, Gurgaon. (Express Photo)

Bibi came back nine days ago. She works as a cook in the high-rises near their home.

“I returned earlier since my document verification was completed. All my employers have taken me back,” she said. “They even sent money to book return tickets for my family. They have been very supportive.”

Bibi said the verification process was smooth. “Compared to the running around we had to do during my husband’s detention, I just needed to make two trips to the local police station at home — once to confirm what documents were required and then to submit them. Then we had to go to the panchayat office to get a letter attested by the village chief, that we are originally residents of the village. Everything was done within two weeks.”

The local police then completed the verification and issued a certificate; workers then submitted copies to their landlords in Gurgaon and the Gurgaon Police.

Bibi said they stayed back longer as it had been over two years since they had last been home. Besides, her husband’s verification was pending.

In Rabiul’s case, their landlord, Surender Jatav, helped facilitate verification with Gurgaon Police after he was released. “So, I am not too worried,” Rabiul said.

In Sector 28, at the slums of Chakkarpur near Yadav Chaupal, fewer than half of the families who had gone back home, to Uttar Dinajpur and Malda districts, have returned. Several homes still sported locks.

“Around 12 families returned earlier this month, and at least 15 more are yet to. Only those whose police verification is complete have started coming back. Local police (in West Bengal) asked us for documents such as property deeds, documents showing our link with our parents, voter cards, etc, for the verification process,” said Zayan Ali, a resident of the slum.

While he stayed put in the city — he works at a furniture showroom as an assistant — he sent his family home.

He added that the families who haven’t returned are facing delays because documents with a Gurgaon address are taking longer to be verified.

Asked about the need for documents and the process workers must follow to submit them, a Gurgaon Police spokesperson said, “No extra documents need to be submitted regarding checks by their local police. Neither have we asked for it nor sought any fresh verification (post the July drive) from our end.”

The existing process for police verification in Gurgaon for a person who is a resident of the city — requiring it for a private job or any other purpose — is through a form that can be submitted online or a physical application. It is to be addressed to the DCP (Headquarters), with two address and ID proofs attached.

Meanwhile, those who have returned have resumed work. Men have gone back to jobs in construction, while women have rejoined work as domestic helpers in nearby housing societies.

One of the women, who did not wish to be named, said, “Abhi ke liye toh sab vapas theek hain, par dekhte hain (For now everything is fine, but let’s see…)”