TMC MP: Matuas in Pune called ‘Bangladeshi', held
Tired of too many ads? go ad free now
The AIMM ID card bears the signature of junior Union minister and Bongaon MP Shantanu Thakur, who heads the Mahasangha.
Citizenship has been a restive issue among Matuas, prompting AIMM to issue the identity cards.
Islam, also chairperson of the Bengal Migrant Workers' Welfare Board, said in a post on X: "Members of the Matua community are experiencing harassment at the hands of the police in BJP-governed Maharashtra."
Islam said Pune Police on July 2 arrested Arush Adhikari, a Matua and a resident of Habra in North 24 Parganas. The next day, on July 3, police arrested Adhikari's wife Priyanka along with their six-month-old baby, as well as his sister Banita Biswas along with her two children. The cops also arrested Bongaon residents Shib Biswas and Bibek Goswami.
I
n all, five persons and three minors were now in custody, said Islam.
The Adhikari family, which migrated to Pune for work, was allegedly detained and labelled "Bangladeshi" despite possessing all valid documents and the AIMM card bearing Thakur's signature, Islam claimed.
"Pune Police are not accepting the documents," he said, alleging that the BJP leadership was attempting to discredit Bengali-speaking migrant workers by associating them with Rohingya. This latest harassment of Bengalis comes after similar incidents in Odisha, Assam and Rajasthan, Islam claimed.
Tired of too many ads? go ad free now
"The divisive politics of BJP appears to be specifically targeting Bengali people. Contact has been established with the impacted family, who verified that Maharashtra police have taken Arush Adhikary and seven others, including underage children, in custody on suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals. BJP MP Shantanu Thakur is himself a member of the Matua community," Islam wrote on X.
Trinamool's Rajya Sabha MP and Matua leader Mamata Bala Thakur criticised BJP for harassing people speaking Bengali while they had Matua Mahasabha cards signed by Thakur.
Calls to Thakur's mobile went unanswered.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
35 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Amid tensions between BJP and Shinde's Sena, Maharashtra CM Fadnavis invites Uddhav to join govt
Amid tensions between the BJP and the Shiv Sena faction led by deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday extended an olive branch to Uddhav Thackeray, inviting him to join the government. With the term of Shiv Sena (UBT) MLC and leader of Opposition Ambadas Danave coming to an end, Fadnavis, Shinde and Thackeray delivered speeches. Thackeray praised Danave, saying he has worked hard and earned a good name for himself and the party as well. He said that Danave will come again to power, without changing his party, but as part of the Shiv Sena (UBT) only. 'We are sure that in 2029, the positions in the House -- the treasury benches and opposition -- will be exchanged. We will be in power while the people who are in power will sit in opposition,' Thackeray said. In response to Thackeray's remark, chief minister Fadnavis quickly said, 'Uddhav ji, there is no scope for the exchange of positions in 2029 as well. But there is one scope that can be explored. You can join our treasury benches and shift your sitting position. We can talk about this later separately,' he said, adding that the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena is still a friendly party.
Time of India
39 minutes ago
- Time of India
Should ghosts vote in Bihar, BJP asks Rahul
Patna: The BJP has taken a swipe at Congress MP Rahul Gandhi over his criticism of the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. BJP state spokesperson Neeraj Kumar on Wednesday questioned the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, asking whether he wanted "bhoot-pret" (ghosts) to vote in the upcoming Bihar assembly elections. While addressing a rally in Assam on Wednesday, Rahul alleged that a new voter list was being prepared in Bihar by removing the names of lakhs of people. "I want to warn the people of Assam that what they (BJP) did in Maharashtra and what they are trying to do in Bihar, they will try to do the same in Assam as well. It is the responsibility of all of you and us that we do not let them do this," Rahul said. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI) report released on Wednesday, more than 35 lakh (35,69,435) of the total 7.90 crore voters in Bihar were not found at their addresses. "Probably 12,55,620 (1.59%) of them were deceased electors and 17,37,336 (2.2%) have probably shifted permanently so far," the ECI stated. The BJP's Neeraj claimed the Congress and RJD wanted even the dead to vote. "The names of those who have died in the last 22 years are still present in the voter list. Should the ECI not remove their names? Does Congress want infiltrators and illegal citizens to vote too? Congress wants to win elections with the help of fake voters," Neeraj alleged. "Article 326 makes it clear that only Indian citizens have the right to vote. But Congress is constantly opposing constitutional institutions," he said. BJP ally HAM(S) national president and minister Santosh Suman also criticised the RJD, claiming they had no remorse for the 15 years of jungle raj and were once again trying to scare the people of Bihar to garner votes.
Time of India
39 minutes ago
- Time of India
Cybercrime & PMAY payments spark storm in Chhattisgarh Assembly, Minister Vijay Sharma questioned by BJP MLAs, Congress
RAIPUR: The third day of the Monsoon Session of the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly witnessed sharp exchanges and heated debates, particularly over the rising cases of cybercrime in the state. BJP MLA targeted the government, alleging gross negligence and delay in action despite the alarming surge in cyber frauds across the state. Raising the issue during the Question Hour in the House, senior BJP MLA Sunil Soni questioned the government's inaction, stating, 'Cyber frauds are being reported across the state every day. Thousands have fallen victim, and in some tragic cases, people have even committed suicide. Yet, not a single cyber expert has been appointed so far. The situation is dire and demands immediate attention.' The session was marked by sharp criticism of the government's 'inaction and delay' in tackling what legislators called an escalating digital threat. Raising the issue in the House, senior BJP MLA Sunil Soni slammed Home minister for its 'casual approach,' pointing out that despite growing cases of cyber fraud, no dedicated cyber experts had been appointed in the state. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Viral wajah Jokowi membengkak dan ruam menghitam saat ultah ke-64, sakit serius atau hanya alergi? CNA Indonesia Baca Undo 'Thousands have been duped, and there are even cases of people dying by suicide. Yet, there has been no serious effort to address the issue. The situation is dire and there's no clarity about cyber thanas as promised, nor any awareness where the cases should be registered. Besides, the cops at police stations linger over the complaints having no clue about what sections to be imposed,' he said. Soni further questioned the functioning of cyber police stations. 'While the data shared by home minister Vijay Sharma claims to have cyber units, most people don't even know where they are. NCRB and AI-based reports confirm over 16,000 cybercrime cases have been reported, yet no significant action has been taken,' he said. Responding, Sharma stated that 1,301 cybercrime cases had been registered in the state. He dismissed AI-based data, claiming the government was working with 'verified figures,' and clarified that cyber cells, not stations, had been established in every district. 'The NCRB has not published new data since 2022, so questioning recent figures is baseless,' he added. Sharma added that a 'Cyber Bhawan' was inaugurated by chief minister at the cost of Rs 277 crore and I can take all the members for a round and show that the cases of all districts were being lodged there. BJP MLAs Ajay Chandrakar and Rajesh Munat also raised concerns. Chandrakar demanded clarity on how many cyber commandos had been trained and how many appointments had been made. Sharma reiterated that the recruitment of specialists was 'in process,' but failed to give a timeline. 'The cyber experts are being empanelled under the IT Act while batch of six trained cyber experts including an IPS are already on job as experts. This is a continuous process and appointments will be done.' Munat cited figures indicating Rs 107 crore had been siphoned off through cyber fraud in the state, of which only about Rs 3 crore had been recovered. He demanded the appointment of a senior officer to oversee the situation. Sharma responded that recovery of funds is subject to court procedures and that an IG-level officer has already been appointed for cybercrime. In response to a query on arrests made between January 2024 and June 2025, Sharma said three bank-related fraud cases had led to the imprisonment of seven accused, from Raipur, Durg and Bilaspur. While the cybercrime debate dominated the session, Opposition Congress also raised the issue of completion of work and payments under PM Awas Yojana and MNREGA. Leader of Opposition Dr Charan Das Mahant questioned the state's handling of PM housing benefits, especially in cases where houses were allegedly marked complete despite missing toilets. He asked if the completion is considered and payments were done only upon construction of house, or MNREGA work or building of toilets. Deputy CM Vijay Sharma defended by attributing past delays to the previous government and claimed that under CM Vishnu Deo Sai, all pending payments had been cleared right from year 2011. In further exchanges, Mahant raised concerns about fund delays in MNREGA, citing specific districts like Jashpur and Bijapur. Sharma responded that all labour payments were made by June 30, but agreed to verify any discrepancies if provided with documentation, mainly in interior regions of Bijapur, where bank accounts might not be functional. Mahant reacted stating that he has got complaints about completed houses under PMAY, the payments were which were stalled by claiming they were incomplete and they were trying to 'fool' the govt. Sharma replied that Mahant's comment was very hurtful to him while he's ready with all the documents that shows how Congress delayed the PMAY construction despite approval from the Centre. This was followed by noisy scenes as opposition members objected Sharma's reply. Assembly Speaker Raman Singh then said the word 'bewakoof' was abolished and it should not be used any further in the House.
