New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to put an interim stay on the detention of Bengali-speaking migrant workers who are alleged to be illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.
“We cannot overlook ground realities. Suppose someone is an Infiltrator and he enters illegally. How to deal with that situation? If you don’t detain, the writing on the wall is that they will disappear,” Justice Surya Kant said, as reported by News 18.
The hearing came after Bengali-speaking individuals were allegedly detained in Delhi on suspicion of being Bangladeshi citizens without verifying their identities. The West Bengal government has slammed the BJP-led Centre for targeting Bengalis. The Kolkata Police have also introduced a helpline for migrant workers from the state facing harassment and identity checks in other states.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi heard the matter. They called for the responses of the Union as well as respondent-states/UTs (Odisha, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi, Bihar, UP, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and West Bengal), reported LiveLaw.
The case was taken up for hearing as the West Bengal Migrant Workers Welfare Board had filed a plea, alleging that pursuant to an MHA circular of May, various state authorities were randomly picking up Bengali Muslim migrant laborers. Such states were reportedly claiming that these detainees were Bangladeshis. However, the petitioner’s advocate Prashant Bhushan argued that almost in all cases it was found that the worker was an Indian citizen.
“There needs to be a nodal agency to coordinate between state of origin and state where they have gone for livelihood,” Justice Kant mentioned. Justice Bagchi also questioned whether there was an authority under existing legislation for coordination between state or origin and state where migrant labor is working, reported LiveLaw.
However, the bench did not grant any interim relief, expressing its wish to hear the stance of the respondents.
“Suppose someone has come illegally in India, how to deal with that situation? If they don’t detain, he will disappear. Some mechanism required for bonafide workers…either state of origin can issue some kind of card…and local police accept it as prima facie proof of his having come for livelihood…”, said Justice Kant
