“Large scale illegal migration from East Pakistan/Bangladesh over several decades has been altering the demographic complexion of this State. It poses a grave threat both to the identity of the Assamese people and to our national security. Successive Governments at the Centre and in the State have not adequately met this challenge. As Governor of Assam, I feel it is my bounden duty, both to the Nation and the State I have sworn to serve, to place before you this report on the dangers arising from the continuing silent demographic invasion. I have also formulated my recommendations for dealing with this issue of vital importance.” – Lt Gen (Retd) S K Sinha, PVSM, Governor of Assam, in his letter to Rashtrapati of Bharat while submitting the REPORT ON ILLEGAL MIGRATION INTO ASSAM, dated November 8, 1998
While resigning from Nehru’s cabinet on September 27, 1951, Dr Ambedkar made a strong pitch about the situation on the Eastern border. He said, “I felt that we should be more deeply concerned with East Bengal where the condition of our people seems from all the newspapers intolerable than with Kashmir.” Even after witnessing another partition in 1971 and the continuous inflow of illegal migrants, we as a nation took the issue lightly. The landmark judgement of the Supreme Court upholding the Constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act 1955 will pave the way for implementing Section 5 of the Assam Accord. Simultaneously, it has given us an opportunity to address the issue of illegal migration from Bangladesh in totality.
Since the horrific and unnatural Partition of Bharat on religious lines, the eastern border has been in continuous flux. Earlier, it was mostly the Hindu refugees fleeing from religious persecution, as we have witnessed recently after the undemocratic takeover of power through the so-called student protest. As a result, the Hindu population in East Pakistan started declining steeply. In 1947 it was 27 per cent, by 1971 it got reduced to 14 per cent and now it is believed to be 8 per cent. It was Bharat’s moral and civilisational responsibility, and through the Citizenship Amendment Act, we have tried to resolve this issue to some extent.
The illegal migration was not limited to the persecuted minorities. From Jinnah to Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, all the leaders supporting partition on religious lines had vicious plans for West Bengal and Assam. Everybody hoped that the partition of Pakistan on the linguistic lines would end this expansionist attitude and resultant problem, which unfortunately did not happen. The 1991 census of Bharat showed that the country’s Muslim population had increased by four million or 65.47 per cent over that of 1971, whereas in Assam alone, the increase had been by 77.42 per cent. The 2011 census further validated that nine districts of Assam had already become Muslim-majority districts, while a few more districts are on the verge of becoming so. Assam Accord 1985 was necessitated because of this historical background, in which the demand of the Assamese population to decide the cut-off date for granting citizenship in Assam was accepted. The situation in West Bengal and other Northeastern states is not very different. The Bangladeshi illegals, along with Rohingyas, have found their way up to Delhi, Mumbai, Jammu-Kashmir, Hyderabad etc., through rackets providing the documentation.
These issues are not mere migration issues based on economic needs. The history of Islamist supremacy, separatism and partition makes this a complex problem involving radicalism, national security and the land rights of the indigenous communities. The Supreme Court’s judgement has now decided the March 25, 1971 deadline for granting citizenship to illegal migrants. The judgment has also acknowledged the “clandestine nature of such inflows” while underscoring the need for a more robust policy to curb illicit movements. The court has categorically held that: Immigrants who entered the State of Assam on or after 25.03.1971 are not entitled to the protection conferred vide Section 6A.
The CAA has already protected the persecuted minorities, against which Muslim fanatics were agitating with the support of blind communal secularists. The critical question is, can this process of detection and deportation of illegals be limited to Assam? What about the Bangladeshis who have surreptitiously entered and settled in other parts of Bharat, altering the demography and electoral outcome in a significant way? Can a work permit clause be introduced for some who have entered Bharat for economic reasons? How are we going to address the illegal, criminal and radical activities of these illegal migrants? To save the rights of local tribal communities and their land rights and to save our democracy from the threat of radicalism and terrorism, we must take this national issue seriously and nip it in the bud once and for all.
