A political firestorm has erupted between West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the detention of Bengali-speaking migrant workers in BJP-ruled states, with accusations of harassment and wrongful deportation intensifying ahead of the 2026 Bengal Assembly elections. Reports of 237 workers detained in Haryana and one person from Rajasthan pushed into Bangladesh have fuelled the controversy, with TMC accusing the BJP of targeting Bengalis under the guise of verifying Indian credentials.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has vocally condemned the detentions, alleging a deliberate campaign against Bengali-speaking citizens. In a post on X on July 24, 2025, she stated, “Have been increasingly receiving reports of detentions of and atrocities on our Bengali-speaking people from different districts of West Bengal in Gurgaon, Haryana. West Bengal police is receiving these reports from Haryana police in the name of requests for identity searches… Have been separately and increasingly receiving reports from other States like Rajasthan etc about illegal ‘pushbacks’ of West Bengal citizens with all proper documents to Bangladesh directly!!”
The issue gained traction after Gurugram authorities detained 237 migrant workers, primarily from districts like Malda, Nadia, and Murshidabad, suspecting them of holding fraudulent Indian documents. In Rajasthan, one individual was reportedly deported to Bangladesh, despite possessing “valid identification”, prompting outrage from TMC leaders. Banerjee, addressing the media, emphasised the workers’ rights, saying, “Any Indian citizen can go to any part of the country and work there. This is their right. They are hired for their skills. These illegal detentions are an insult to our mother tongue and ashmita (identity).”
The man pushed into Bangladesh is identified as Amir Sheikh, a 20 year-old mason from West Bengal’s Malda district, whose deportation to Bangladesh has sparked widespread outrage after a ‘purported’ video of him pleading with authorities went viral. In the footage, Sheikh, detained by Rajasthan police two months back, tearfully asserts his Indian citizenship, stating he possesses all necessary documents except a birth certificate, which authorities demanded to verify his nationality. Despite his family providing his voter card, Aadhaar, ration card, and a certified family tree to the Rajasthan Police, Sheikh was handed over to the Border Security Force (BSF) and pushed across the border Tuesday night. “I am from India and now pushed into Bangladesh where I have no one. I showed them all the documents but they insisted on more documents that id dint have. I gave them my family chain. They kept me in jail for two months and later they got me to an unidentifiable place and the pushed me to Bangladesh”, he said in the video.
TMC leaders have framed the detentions as part of a broader “linguistic terror” campaign by BJP-ruled states. TMC MP Mahua Moitra questioned the legality of holding workers in Gurugram’s Sector 10A community center, asking on X, “Is Sector 10 A community center an illegal detention camp? Maids, cooks, menial workers living in complete terror.” The party claims that even workers with valid Aadhaar and PAN cards are being harassed, with some facing water and electricity cuts in areas like Delhi’s Jai Hind Colony.
The BJP, however, has dismissed these allegations as political posturing. BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya accused the TMC of shielding illegal immigrants, stating, “You are LYING. Those being questioned are illegal Bangladeshis, who perhaps speak Bangla but are NOT Indian citizens… Your administration has enabled these illegal migrants to obtain Aadhaar and other government documents before infiltrating other parts of India.” BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari further claimed that the detained workers were “Rohingyas” and that TMC was protecting infiltrators for electoral gains.
The controversy has sparked legal action, with the Calcutta High Court questioning the Delhi government over the deportation of six individuals, including a minor, from West Bengal. TMC MP Samirul Islam, chair of the West Bengal Migrant Workers’ Welfare Board, called the detentions “unconstitutional” and a “crime,” demanding accountability from the BJP. Meanwhile, Gurugram police maintain they are following Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines to identify illegal immigrants, with a senior officer stating, “The verification process doesn’t lead to unnecessary harassment for genuine citizens.”
The issue has reignited Bengali identity politics, with Mamata Banerjee announcing a year-long “Bhasa Andolan” (language movement) starting July 27 to protest the alleged targeting. As both parties trade barbs, the plight of migrant workers, many employed as garbage collectors or domestic helps- remains caught in the crossfire. With the 2026 elections looming, the TMC is leveraging the issue to rally Bengali pride, while the BJP insists it is addressing national security concerns.
