“We have been resolving all issues faced by Hindu-Bengalis one by one. We ensured that they got their Aadhaar cards back. We have stopped slapping new citizenship cases against them,” Sarma said on the sidelines of a programme
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. File Pic
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday asserted that Bengali-speaking Hindus have been “most comfortable” in the state under the BJP’s rule over the past 10 years, and said his government has been working to resolve the issues faced by the community.
He also claimed that his government has been thwarting attempts by Bangladeshis to enter the country illegally.
“We have been resolving all issues faced by Hindu-Bengalis one by one. We ensured that they got their Aadhaar cards back. We have stopped slapping new citizenship cases against them,” Sarma said on the sidelines of a programme.
“I don’t think any previous government has done as much as I am doing. But everything has to be done through a process; otherwise, the court will stop it,” he added.
The chief minister said Bengali-speaking Hindus have been “most comfortable in the state under BJP rule in the last 10 years”.
Asserting that all issues between Assamese and Bengali-speaking people have now subsided, he said, “Hindus identify themselves by their religion, and not by language anymore.”
Asked about the number of illegal Bangladeshis pushed back at the international border, Sarma replied, “It is not proper to give figures. When the time comes, we will give the figures.”
He added that Bangladeshis may attempt to enter through Tripura, Dawki in Meghalaya, Mankachar or Sribhumi in Assam, but “our security forces have been sending them back.”
“We are taking steps to ensure that fresh infiltration cannot take place,” he asserted.
Noting that several middlemen had been arrested, Sarma said, “It is unfortunate that many of them are Hindus. In Tripura, dalaals (middlemen) are all Hindus. They help one person cross the border for Rs 20,000.”
Asked about TMC MP Sushmita Dev’s allegation that Bengali-speaking Hindus face problems in Assam, the CM said, “She wants to break Hindu society, but we are one.”
“How can someone who has left her own place challenge me? No political leader leaves his or her origin. But she has left Assam and comes here as a guest now,” Sarma added, referring to Dev, a native of Silchar and former Lok Sabha MP, who is now a Rajya Sabha member from West Bengal.
Sarma also maintained that the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi accorded utmost importance to the Bengali language.
Asked to comment on BJP leader Amit Malviya’s reported remarks on the Bengali language, Sarma said, “I don’t know what Malviya has said. It is important what Narendra Modi says.”
“Bengali language cannot be called a Bangladeshi language. How can the BJP speak against Bengali when it has accorded so much importance to the language?” Sarma added, alluding to the Centre’s decision to grant Bengali the status of a Classical Language.
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