Among other things, the election in West Bengal is also a litmus test for the much-debated law – Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) – in its present form. Matua is an influential community of Dalit Hindu refugees in West Bengal that hold sway over at least three-four seats in south Bengal, but mainly Bongaon.
Will the CAA add impetus to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) political aspiration in Bengal or turn out to be a dampener for the party? While the answer will be known only when the results are out on June 4, the mood on the ground is mixed.
There are many reasons behind the confusion and uncertainty. Addressing an election rally in Bongaon on Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah quelled people’s doubts, saying that West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee was “lying about the CAA".
“Banerjee’s campaign about the CAA, citing complications in the application form, land or other documents bearing proof of the Bangladeshi descent of the refugee Hindus needed for the application and so on, have, indeed, confused the Matuas and other refugees about the CAA, a law that they fought for years," said a senior BJP leader, who has been working among the Matuas for the 10 years.
At the rally, Shah said, “Didi has been lying and confusing you about the CAA. I assure all of you that all our Hindu refugee brothers and sisters will be granted citizenship. They will have equal respect in the country. No one will bother you once you become a citizen here. Mamata Banerjee is opposing the CAA because she has given fake identity cards to infiltrators. But this is Modi ji’s guarantee that no power in the world can stop citizenship from being granted to Matuas, Rajbanshis and other refugee brothers and sisters."
THE CONFUSION
After the initial excitement and celebration, the Matuas in Bongaon are now silent. According to sources in the ministry of home affairs (MHA), the Matuas are yet to apply for citizenship. Local MP and a Union Minister, Shantanu Thakur, however, told News 18 that the application would start going in bulk once the elections are over, while around 500 members of Matua Mahasangha have already applied with his assistance.
Banerjee has been saying that the community members may be sent to detention camps, similar to what happened in Assam, and lose their identity cards. The application form also needs some documents. Even as Banerjee continues to say that she would never allow the CAA or National Register For Citizens (NRC) to be formalised in Bengal, her nephew and party’s national general secretary, Abhishek, said that he would support CAA, even going against the opinions of some senior leaders in the party, only if the government assured that Matuas would not be asked for their old land documents or prove their Bangladeshi descent.
Banerjee has fielded a turncoat from the BJP, Biswajit Das. Das, who won the Bagda assembly seat in 2021 as a BJP candidate, jumped ship later and joined the TMC. Of the seven assembly segments that constitute the Bongaon Lok Sabha seat, the BJP won six in the 2021 assembly elections.
‘DIDI PLAYING A DUAL ROLE’
Speaking to News18, Thakur said the chief minister was deliberately creating confusion for her vested interests. “CM Mamata Banerjee is playing a dual game. She says that ration card and voter cards are proof of citizenship. But the District Intelligence Bureau Office (DIB) always bothers our community members for ancestral documents or any document that proves that they came from Bangladesh. They face difficulty while getting a passport made or verified, or to get an admission in educational institutions. Our community members and the other Hindu refugees always need to prove where they came from, how and why. This is a continuous process for us," he said.
“This has been a stalemate for us and the other refugee communities for the past 50 years since Bangladesh came to existence. If she is honest, she should stop the DIB inquiry for any official purpose, including getting caste, birth and death certificates. If any of us fails to show the land document or any other document, the DIB officials ask for a huge bribe to get the work done. Once we get citizenship, these problems will be solved once and for all. Moreover, our community will have no need to keep pleasing the party in power just to stay in this country," he added.
AT GROUND ZERO
The Matuas have fought a long fight to get the CAA implemented. However, after the law was implemented, there is a sense of calm and a strange uncertainty that the Matuas and other refugee communities are dealing with.
Shrestha Mridha, a young teacher who works in Thakur’s election campaign team, said that she had yet to apply. “We have the relevant documents and will apply after the elections. Everybody wants to wait and watch. Our MP will also apply for citizenship," she added. The young members manage a huge control room near Thakur’s residence to supervise campaigns, make videos and reels and manage social media.
As part of a confidence-building measure, Thakur also announced that he and his family members would apply for citizenship.
Minati Biswas, a homemaker in Gaighata in Bongaon, said his family would wait to see what others were doing. “We are confused. Why is the government asking for so many papers and documents? Our parents escaped atrocities in Bangladesh. We had to run away as people were being killed. Was there a time to carry our belongings and documents," she asked.
Nirmal Biswas, a grocery shop owner in Ashoknagar, said his family would apply only after they see others getting citizenship successfully. “We have our voter’s card and Aadhaar card. Why should we expose ourselves to new complications? We will see how it goes for a month. If it goes smoothly for others, we will think of applying," said Biswas.
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