‘Bangladeshi infiltration’ is changing demography of a Jharkhand region: ST panel

Conglomerate body of Adivasi rights organisations write to State government, seek prosecution of Prime Minister, Home Minister for hate speech over ‘infiltration’ allegations

In a report submitted to the Union Home Ministry, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has now asserted that “Bangladeshi infiltration” is taking place in Jharkhand’s Santhal Pargana region and that the demography of the region has changed significantly due to this reason, officials of the Commission have said.

Also read:JMM, RJD, Congress aid infiltration; BJP will throw Bangladeshis, Rohingya out: Amit Shah

Asha Lakra, Member, NCST, who led the team that authored the report, told The Hindu that their probe “confirmed that infiltration is taking place” and has documented purported “evidence” of this in its 28-page report, which is largely based on anecdotal material gathered from conversations with “neighbours, panchayat members, and villagers”.

This comes amid the ongoing politics over the changing demography of the region ahead of the Assembly election in the State, which is due to be held by the end of this year. Ruling party Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief and Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s seat — Barhait — comes under the Santhal Pargana region.

“We cannot really say when exactly these infiltrators have come in but if you look at areas like Barhait Santhali North and South — all are Adivasi villages. Today, Adivasis here have reduced in numbers. This proves that infiltration has happened, and this seems to have happened in the last two decades or so. We have said this in our report to the Home Ministry,” Ms. Lakra told The Hindu, asserting that the Commission took it upon itself to investigate the issue and submit a report to the Home Ministry. The report was submitted on September 15 and has not been made public.

The Ministry had submitted before Jharkhand High Court on September 11 that “infiltration” had taken place in the region and that that tribal population of the region has reduced significantly since 1951. But the Ministry had not linked the two. It had said, “Quantum of decrease in tribal population due to outward migration, low child-birth rate among tribals, conversion to Christianity and other reasons needs also [sic] to be assessed.”

Ms. Lakra, who is also co-incharge of the Bharatiya Janata Party in West Bengal, has been among those at the forefront of alleging that the demographic changes in Santhal Pargana were caused by “illegal infiltration of Bangladeshis”. This allegation has been amplified by the top leadership of the party like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and several Union Ministers.

Meanwhile, the Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha, a conglomerate of Adivasi rights bodies in the State, on Friday (September 27, 2024) wrote to the Jharkhand Chief Secretary and Director General of Police, seeking prosecution of BJP leaders, including the Prime Minister, Home Minister, and others, under hate speech laws as per directions of the Supreme Court.

Ms. Lakra said that NCST’s report was prepared based on field visits conducted by a team of the Commission to the districts of Sahibganj, Pakur, Godda, and Jamtara. She said the team spoke to around 100-150 people in these districts during their visits in the last two months, who have “testified that Bangladeshis are infiltrating their villages and capturing Adivasi lands by misleading Adivasi women and trapping them in marriages”.

However, Ms. Lakra clarified that the persons who have testified have not reported this happening to them. “They are neighbours, panchayat members and villagers, who are seeing the massive demographic changes before them and reporting what they are observing in neighbouring households to us. Those who are being misled and trapped are too scared to speak to us themselves,” she said.

Ms. Lakra said that the NCST team also found instances where sacred Adivasi land, which locals worshipped, had been sanctioned to be turned into cemeteries for Muslims, citing one such example of a six-acre plot in Sahibganj’s Tetariya village. “We found examples of this in each district we visited,” she said.

Published - September 27, 2024 10:37 pm IST