The CAA Debate: Quest for citizenship Vs the struggle for documents for the Matuas

Renu Sarkar, 80, had come down to offer prayers at the ‘Harichand Thakur’ temple on a sultry Tuesday afternoon. She is a Matua, one of the close to three crore people belonging to the Matua sect settled in West Bengal. She too, like others had escaped the violence of 1971 in Bangladesh and had taken refuge in Bongaon region of the North 24 Paraganas district, eventually named after Harichand Thakur as Thakurnagar. Around 40 years back, when she had come down here along with her two children, she had hoped for a life without the scars of the memory that uprooted her from her own land. Over the years, she and her family had charted a new beginning. First a ration card and then Aadhaar card issued by Indian government authorities. 40 years later, the citizenship debate is back but she is unbothered.

“I am eighty years old. I don’t worry about anything. I have an Aadhaar card. But I had never applied for a voter id card. My children have all the cards including a voter id. I have never gone back to Bangladesh and don’t wish to. I have embraced this land and India has embraced me. I don’t know what CAA is and why should I care. My children will handle everything; I am too old to cry for citizenship. In heart I am an Indian and shall die as one”, said the octogenarian. When she came to India, she couldn’t bring along with her any of the documents that can now assure her Bangladeshi nationality.

The CAA rules have been notified and the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 has been implemented as a law, 4 years after the bill was passed in the parliament on December 11, 2019. The rules specify, individuals applying for citizenship under section 6B (Indian nationality under the CAA to the persecuted non-Muslim migrants - Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians - from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan) will have to furnish a set a documents along with their application forms including a document confirming his or her parents’ date of birth. “Evidence of the date of birth of parents viz. a copy of the passport or birth certificate. In case of non availability of passport of mother/father, birth certificate of the applicant clearly indicating the name, address and nationality of mother/father”, reads the CAA 2024 rules notification.  Renuka Sarkar, neither has her own birth certificate nor birth certificates of her parents. “Look at my age. My parents are long dead. I couldn’t bring anything from Bangladesh. In our times, child births happened mostly at homes. Times of our parents were even more backdated, where will find their passport or their birth certificates”, said Renuka. She has lost all her teeth to age, barely can hear or walk. Holding onto a stick, she walked up the stairs of the temple, offered prayers, came down the stairs and then slowly went back home. Her lips wide open, she looked at us and gave a broad toothless smile and said “Hori…Hori…I will soon become a citizen of God’s nation and I don’t care for anything anymore”.

There were celebrations galore outside the house of BJP MP Santanu Thakur, a descendent of the Matua matriarch Binapani Devi or popularly known as Baroma. CAA was a poll commitment to the Matua community by BJP ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The Matuas are marginalised Hindus from Bangladesh who came to India during partition also during and after the 1971 war. They are ‘Namosudras’ and form the second largest concentration of scheduled caste community in Bengal. While most of them have documents such has Aadhaar card, PAN Card, driving licence, voter ID card issued by Indian government authorities, yet the promise for CAA reignited their cry for citizenship. After implementation of the new law, many were happy but equally confused as how they will furnish the documents mandated by the same law they are celebrating. Some even have homes and own land in Bongaon.

“I am very happy that CAA has happened. I have all the documents-from Aadhaar card to voter card but now I will also get a citizen card. No one will then throw us out. I have been voting in every election in the past twenty years. I am an Indian now and I know that but the CAA will confirm our citizenship. However, I don’t have a single document showing my Bangladeshi nationality. I don’t have any documents of my parents, nothing to show that I came from Bangladesh. I don’t know what to do about it… for now we are just celebrating”, said Krishna Roy, 66, his forehead smeared in saffron powder colour (abir). He showed all his Indian credentials, one after the other, pulled them out of his wallet. He lamented that he was denied passport once and hopes after CAA, he will be able to get the passport and then visit Bangladesh once again. “How can you forget the land where you were born? I love India but I can’t hate Bangladesh. At times I feel like visiting my village and reliving the memories of my parents who had died there”, he added. 

The CAA rules 2024 has listed down a set of documents, mandatory to be furnished, at least one of these-

1: Copy of the passport issued by the Government of Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan

2. Registration Certificate or Residential Permit issued by the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer (FRRO) or Foreigners Registration Officer (FRO) in India

3. Birth certificate issued by a Government authority in Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan

4. School certificate or Educational certificate issued by the School or College or Board or University authorities in Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan

5. Identity Document of any kind issued by Government of Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan or any other Government authorities or Government agencies in these countries

6. Any License or Certificate issued by a Government authority of Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan

7. Land or tenancy records in Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan

8. Any document that shows that either of the parents or grandparents or great grandparents of the applicant is or had been a citizen of one of the three countries i.e. Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan

9. Any other document issued by a Government authority or a Government agency in Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan which will establish that the applicant is from Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan

Interestingly none of the people who were celebrating at the Thakurbari courtyard have any of them. “These documents are necessary but if someone doesn’t have any then they can give a self declaration and that would work”, said Santanu Thakur, BJP MP. However, no such clause was there mentioned in the rulebook issued by Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday.

As the celebrations continued, some left for their homes but with the burden of confusion in their minds. Satya Ranjan Rai, 53 is an ardent supporter of Santanu Thakur and he hopes the Thakur family will bail them out from the web of documents. “If Santanu Thakur says to jump into the sea, I will. We are followers of Thakur family. I don’t care about TMC or BJP. Both are playing with us. I have all documents to prove that I am an Indian voter but nothing to prove my roots in Bangladesh…let’s see”, he said

West Bengal Chief Minister has slammed the CAA rules notification that was released right ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and called it BJP’s political bluff. She has vowed not to implement it while warning people and also Matuas “not to fall into the trap of CAA and lose citizenship.”