Author: T V R Shenoy
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: February 14, 2003
You are bound to bump into someone
from Lahore if you stay long enough in Delhi. (Oddly, it is never Multan,
or Rawalpindi, or Lyallpur, or any of the other cities in the western Punjab,
but always Lahore) And most always wax sentimental about the beloved city
they left behind at Partition.
Once, many years ago, I was visiting
a friend in Chittaranjan Park. (For those unfamiliar with Delhi, this is
our 'Little Bengal,' a place originally named 'East Pakistan Displaced
Persons Colony.') His parents happened to be visiting him at the time,
and some of their friends had come around to see them. I was curious to
know whether any of them were as sentimental about the homes which some
of them had (presumably) left behind as their Punjabi counterparts were.
When I put the question to the company
at large, I got the distinct impression that only politeness to a guest
prevented them from wondering about my own sanity! After a long pause,
one old gentleman ventured to suggest that he rather missed his Padma hilsa
- a comment that met with general approval!
Today, he would not miss even that
since the fish now comes by air to India. Unfortunately, that is not the
only thing that Bangladesh exports, and therein lies a major problem for
us in India?
There may be as many as two crore
(20 million) illegal Bangladeshi migrants in India. We do not want them,
and we do not need them. How do we stop the entry of more migrants, and
what do we do with those already inside this country? We are already cursed
with one horrible neighbour to the west, Pakistan, but believe me the one
to our east, Bangladesh, is potentially as much of a headache.
It is not just a case of Bangladesh
unloading its unwanted people on us, and then cheerfully denying any responsibility.
Dacca is also turning a blind eye to Pakistani, or Pakistani-backed, forces
who operate from Bangladeshi territory. The focus right now may be on those
illegal migrants trying to cross into West Bengal, but do not forget that
the international frontier also touches other Indian states. In some, kidnapping
has become a highly profitable cottage industry because criminals know
they can always find a refuge across the border, with Bangladeshi officials
looking away in exchange for a share of the loot. And let us not even talk
about what all those Bangladeshis fleeing their miserable economic basketcase
of a country are doing to the demographics of the North-East! Need I remind
readers that the decade-long Assam agitation began in response to the increasing
number of Bengali-speaking persons?
But the Bangladeshi headache is
no longer Assam's or Tripura's problem alone, but one that must concern
everyone in India. There are huge concentrations of illegal migrants in
the metropolises of Delhi and Mumbai. These become recruiting centers for
anti-national or anti-social elements, especially now when an inclement
economic climate means that other jobs are that much tougher to find.
Truth be told, the problem of migration
from Bangladesh is almost as old as that of infiltration from Pakistan.
About 25% of the population of East Pakistan was Hindu, a proportion that
fell steadily as non-Muslims found themselves treated as second-class citizens.
The trickle of refuges became a flood when the two wings of Pakistan came
to loggerheads in 1971; suddenly India was confronted with both Muslim
and Hindu refugees on its soil. According to reliable estimates, India,
which was struggling to house and feed its own population, had to meet
the challenge of doing the same for up to 12?million refugees.
Some blithely assumed most would
return once East Pakistan became Bangladesh. They did not; in fact, many
more continued to come. I blame Delhi and Calcutta as much as I do Dacca
- far too many politicians decided that they could use Bangladeshi votes
in exchange for 'protection.' That is why it is only now that Delhi has
begun to take the issue seriously.
Islamabad has a simple response
to all charges of infiltration: 'Just say No!' ? in effect deny any responsibility.
Dacca follows suit. But we have had enough of this idiocy. There is no
room any longer for sentimental claptrap about 'brotherhood' and the like.
The illegal migrants must be identified, segregated, and then pushed back
where they came from. India has enough problems of its own without having
to take on Bangladesh's burden as well.
