Bangladesh crisis: As Bengal BJP stirs talk of ‘1 cr refugees’, CAA, cautious TMC govt appeals for calm

Though the CAA is a potent tool for the BJP in Bengal, which has a high number of Bangladeshi Hindu refugees, who entered the country over different waves, it’s a touchy topic in the Northeast whose history is defined by agitations against “outsiders”.

Trinamool Congress supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who had earlier said that she would welcome people from Bangladesh seeking refuge in the country, is taking a more cautious line after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government.

In her first remarks as Bangladesh unravelled, Banerjee appealed to all, including political parties, not to put up posts that could disrupt peace in Bengal and said she would back any stand taken by the Centre on the issue. “If our brothers and sisters who are there face some trouble, the Government of India and the Government of Bangladesh will look into it,” she said.

In his remarks to mediapersons Monday, Adhikari said that with power moving into “their hands”, the minorities in Bangladesh were “in a peril” and it was “clear” that Bangladesh’s 7% Hindus would leave. “Be prepared mentally. One crore refugees will come. We will have to receive them, our Hindu brothers. The government (Centre) has already made arrangements under the CAA.”

BJP MLA and Matua leader Asim Sarkar said: “What is going on in Bangladesh is unfortunate. In this situation, those Hindus who come to India should be given shelter here.”

BJP leader Dilip Ghosh said, “We have seen in the last 70 years that whenever there is a crisis, Hindus come over. We are watching the situation. Any atrocities should be stopped.”

If the BJP is gambling on the Hindu vote, the TMC is worried about any misstep costing it both Hindu support as well as that of the minorities. The party has opposed the CAA as “discriminatory” towards Muslims.

Ironically, when Banerjee said at her July 21 Martyrs’ Day rally in Kolkata that Bengal would shelter “if helpless people knock on the door”, BJP MP Saumitra Khan had accused her of trying to usher in a “Greater Bangladesh” and said the party would not allow that at any cost.

“We know why Banerjee opposes the CAA… her vote bank will dip… I hope the BSF is on high alert at the border,” Khan said.

On Tuesday though, having taken the cue from Banerjee, TMC leaders were restrained. TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, “We expect normalcy and peace to prevail in Bangladesh very soon. As it is a foreign policy subject, whatever decision the Indian Government will take, we will follow. We are only saying that as West Bengal has the longest border with Bangladesh, they should try to take West Bengal in the loop.”

The CPI(M) expressed worry over the unfolding situation in Bangladesh. As state secretary Md Salim called for peace, another senior leader said: “The statue of one of the most prominent Bengali personalities of the last thousand years, Mujibur Rahman, was vandalised. It is a very disturbing picture for us.”