Fresh raids in Jharsuguda District: Over 400 migrant workers detained in Odisha, Bengal seeks their release

“The verification process is being conducted meticulously by senior officials via a joint investigation team, with multiple layers of scrutiny to ensure that no Indian citizen is wrongfully detained or harassed. Every effort is made to uphold the rights of Indian citizens while maintaining the integrity of the process… Those who are producing valid documents are being allowed to return to their place of stay,” Inspector General (Northern Range) Himanshu Lal told The Indian Express over the phone from Sambalpur.

Defending the detention of people, the senior officer said the individuals lacked valid documentation to establish their residency or citizenship, necessitating a thorough verification process to ascertain their identity.

“This procedure is not about targeting any community or region but about upholding the rule of law and ensuring the security of our nation,” Lal said, adding “the exercise is to safeguard the national interest and security, which can’t be compromised”.

According to the Odisha Police, the detained people are being held in “designated facilities with access to adequate food, water, hygiene and medical care, and in line with humanitarian standards”.

The BJP government in Odisha has also asked all districts to identify holding centres to detect, identify, and deport those who are unable to show proof of citizenship.

Meanwhile, sources in the West Bengal government said that in Jharsuguda, police conducted raids in the wee hours of July 7 in colonies and settlements where Bengali migrant workers live.

“The police came and took them away. Many got detained. They were taken to the local police station. Despite providing documents such as proof of residence in West Bengal, the police did not budge and sent them to detention centres,” said Kabir Sheikh, who lives in the migrant colony in Jharsuguda and sells plastic goods.

Sheikh, who hails from Murshidabad, said he was lucky as he was outside the colony during the detention drive.

Families of 13 migrant labourers from Birbhum detained in Odisha submitted residential documents with the local police station, seeking their release. “We just want them to be back soon. They have been working for years outside the state. This has never happened,” said Hajimuddin Sheikh, a resident of Kutulpur village in Birbhum.

Last week, Chief Secretary Manoj Pant wrote a letter to his Odisha counterpart over the detention of Bengali-speaking migrant workers, saying it was “deeply distressing”. Seeking a stop on harassment faced by people from Bengal, he wrote: “What is even more concerning is that, even when these persons produce valid identity documents… In many instances, they are being asked to produce ancestral land records dating back several generations, an unreasonable and unjustifiable demand for migrant workers,” he had added.

This comes close on the heels of similar detentions made in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh – all BJP-ruled states.