Migrant Worker from West Bengal Killed in Odisha on Suspicion of being Bangladeshi, Odisha Police Denied
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Dec 25: A construction worker from Murshidabad district of West Bengal was allegedly lynched to death and a couple of other migrant labourers seriously injured by a group of people in Sambalpur town in western Odisha on Wednesday night.
While those accompanying the deceased 30-year old Jewel Rana Sheikh and his relatives claimed that the worker was killed on suspicion of him being an illegal Bangladeshi migrant, the Odisha police refuting the allegation claimed that the fatal attack was caused by heated exchanges between the two groups over “bidi.” The police also claimed that both the victim and the assailants knew each other and the murder had nothing to do with him being a migrant worker from West Bengal or a Bangladesh.
Contradicting the Odisha police claim that “the murder is related to sudden provocation,” the contractor who engage the workers in Sambalpur said, “the miscreants called workers Bangladeshis, sought Aadhaar proof to prove their nationality and launched sudden attack from behind when they were about to show their Aadhaar cards.”
“The 30-year-old Jewel Rana and two other workers in their early twenties had come out to have tea around 7 pm. suddenly a group of four to five persons appeared and called my workers as Bangladeshi. They wanted proof in form of Aadhaar card. When my workers were going to collect their respective Aadhaar card, they started beating them with stick. The deceased was hit on his head and succumbed to injuries while being rushed to hospital,” narrated Haque Saheb, the labour contractor said. Mr Saheb said they had been working peacefully in Sambalpur area for past 13 years and never faced such violence.
“We were at a tea stall. A group of people asked for a bidi from Jewel. Then they started asking for Aadhaar cards and wanted to know where we were from. We showed our Aadhaar cards. Suddenly, the group, armed with bamboo sticks, started beating us. Jewel was hit on the head. Some others were injured,” alleged Paltu Sheikh, one of the eight construction workers from Murshidabad working in Odisha.
“We rushed him to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead. We are now waiting for the post-mortem to be completed, and then we will take the body home. I have worked in Odisha for 12 years. This is the first time we faced such an incident,” Sheikh said. Two other workers, Akir Sheikh and Palash Sheikh, who sustained injuries in the attack, are at a hospital in Sambalpur.
Nagima Bibi, Jewel’s mother, said, “He went to work there as a mason on December 20. He was supposed to work for three months. Now his body will return. We heard from his co-workers that he was beaten badly by goons who called them Bangladeshis. I want justice for my son.” “We have heard of detentions and assaults of our boys in Odisha, but we thought those were rare incidents. We are poor people. Jewel went there for daily wages of Rs 600,” said Riaqul Haque, his uncle.
In a statement circulated among media persons, Himansu Lal Inspector General of Police (northern) said, “in the murder case registered in Ainthapali police station of Sambalpur, all accused are apprehended. Further scientific investigations are going on as per Law. Murder is related to sudden provocation. It is not regarding targeting anyone.” Condition of two workers admitted in hospital is stated to be stable.
Additional Superintendent of Police Srimant Barik said the labourers from West Bengal had been living in the area for several years and had become familiar with the residents there. Elaborating further, he said, “The workers had friendship with certain group of locals in Sambalpur. They used to have food together. Under influence of alcohol, locals asked for Bidi. There was quarrel between them. One person was attacked out of sudden provocation. The head injury caused due to attack led to death of one person. The incident occurred over a demand for a bidi. A group suddenly attacked the Bengali migrant workers after they refused. We have arrested six people and are identifying whether more were involved,” Barik said.
The incident quickly took on a political dimension, with West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress alleging that the killing was driven by suspicion that the victim was an illegal Bangladeshi immigrant. The TMC asked its leaders to visit the victim’s family. Local TMC leaders and Bengal’s Suti MLA Emani Biswas visited Jewel’s home and promised assistance.
In a post on X, the party said, “The lynching of a Bengali migrant worker in Sambalpur is the direct outcome of @BJP4India’s sustained campaign against Bengalis. A citizen of India was beaten to death because a mob believed the lie that Bengalis are infiltrators who must constantly prove their right to exist.” “This is happening non-stop in BJP-ruled Odisha. Illegal detentions, assaults in the name of Bangladeshi identification, and now the lynching of a poor migrant worker. BJP has blood on its hands. We stand with the family, and all help will be provided,” said Samirul Islam,
The TMC also claimed, “For years, BJP leaders have deliberately branded Bengali-speaking Indians as infiltrators, outsiders, and suspects. That poisonous narrative has now reached the streets, where anyone feels empowered to act as immigration officers and executioners.”
In another post, the party said, “His death is part of a disturbing pattern where Bengali migrant workers are increasingly subjected to suspicion, harassment, and violence in @BJP4India-ruled states, simply for their language and identity. We have been raising this issue relentlessly, warning about the dangerous consequences of branding innocent Bengali migrant workers as suspects. Yet the violence continues, unchecked and unanswered. How many more lives will be lost before this inhuman campaign of hate by the BJP is stopped?”
Trinamool Congress leqader Shashi Panja said in a press conference on Thursday, “The person who died, is his life going to come back? The BJP should give answer to this.”
In the month of August, district police of Jharsuguda, neighbouring to Sambalpur, had picked up 444 people under suspicion of illegal immigration. However, on verification majority were found to be workers from West Bengal.
The total number of migrants from West Bengal working in other States is about 22.40 lakh, according to the West Bengal government. Over the past few months, there have been reports that migrant workers were being targeted and harassed on the suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals. Not only were the workers detained in several States and forced to produce identity documents, some were forcibly pushed back into Bangladesh as the locals refused to accept their Indian citizenship identity. The migrant crisis has triggered a debate on Bengali asmita (cultural and linguistic identity), and has been dominating politics in the State for several months.
The West Bengal government has announced the Shramashree scheme to provide ₹5,000 per month for migrant workers returning to the State. About 24,000 migrant workers have returned to West Bengal in recent months, according to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
