Author: Editorial
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: August 1, 2008
Threat from Bangladeshis exposed
Justice BK Sarma of Gauhati High Court was
perhaps being cautious with his words when he declared that "this can
happen only in Assam" after providing details of how a Pakistani national,
Mohammed Kamaruddin, had managed to contest the Assembly election of 1996,
albeit unsuccessfully, posing as an Indian citizen. The revelation came in
the course of Justice Sarma's ruling on a clutch of 23 petitions moved by
61 people who had been determined as foreigners by the Foreigners Tribunals.
The police have been directed to take 49 of the petitioners in their custody
pending their deportation. But, given the level of political patronage enjoyed
by illegal immigrants in our country, more so in Assam (as also in West Bengal)
where entire districts have been over-run by Bangladeshi infiltrators and
the law of the land has been subverted to provide them with bogus citizenship
papers in exchange of their votes, it remains to be seen whether these foreigners
are actually sent back to the country of their origin. Kamaruddin's brazen
attempt to secure a seat in the Assam Assembly tells the story of illegal
immigration -- and its sinister political, social and cultural implications
-- in the most vivid manner. He used his Pakistani passport to travel to Bangaldesh
from where he sneaked across the border into India. As Justice Sarma has indicated,
he could have travelled far and wide in India before settling in Assam where
illegal immigrants like him have limitless advantages. At an individual level,
Kamaruddin's story exemplifies the larger point made by Justice Sarma: "Bangladeshi
infiltrators have not only intruded into every nook and corner of Assam, but
have already become kingmakers. And if this trend is not arrested, they will
soon intrude upon the corridors of power." The observation calls for
a minor amendment -- Bangladeshi infiltrators have infiltrated into every
nook and corner of the country and the rate at which their numbers are increasing,
it is only a matter of time before they are able to swing elections from Assam
to Andhra Pradesh. Therefore, the problem of illegal immigration is not unique
to Assam, nor can it "happen only in Assam".
While it may serve the electoral purpose of
certain political parties, most notably the Congress and the CPI(M), to deny
infiltration from the east, there is by now sufficient evidence, including
a detailed parliamentary standing committee report, about the scale of illegal
immigration and its adverse impact on our society and polity, not to mention
internal security. The local terror network that is being increasingly used
for outrages likes those witnessed in Mumbai, Jaipur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad
and Surat, involves Bangladeshis indoctrinated by organisations like HuJI
and sent across the border to undertake jihadi missions. Yet, there is little
or no matching response from authorities to stem the tide of illegal immigration.
On the contrary, the UPA Government has sought to undermine the Supreme Court's
July 2005 order striking down the IMDT Act, which was loaded in favour of
illegal immigrants, through administrative fiats. But it would be unfair to
blame the Congress or the Communists alone; in States where the BJP or its
allies in the NDA are in power, there has been no visible action to detect
and deport aliens. It is facetious to suggest that detection is difficult
and deportation near impossible because unless an effort is made, we wouldn't
now the results for sure.
