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A section of a crowd that attended a public rally against illegal immigrants looks on during the event on Thursday, at Chumukedima. (EM Images/Caisii Mao)[/caption]
Staff Reporter
Dimapur, Oct. 5 (EMN): The need to strengthen the ILP mechanism in the state and filter the entry of immigrants from Bangladesh – without antagonising the Indian Muslims already settled in pockets of the state – was the recurring message of a public rally held at Chumukedima on Thursday.
The rally, according to the organisers (Tribal Union Chumukedima Town), was called for the purpose of creating “mass awareness on the menace of random influx of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants”.
“It is important and it is necessary to make it absolutely clear that this is not a rally against Muslims. This is a rally against illegal Bangladeshis. They are not Indians. They are foreigners and we, the people of Nagaland say that these illegal foreigners must be deported from our land.
“That is the issue and this is not against the Muslims in general. This confusion should not harass or put our little children in the mainland (states of India) in any kind of difficulties,” according to the retired bureaucrat, Khekiye K Sema.
He felt that even as the “IBI (illegal Bangladeshi immigrants) issue” has become very ‘serious’ in the state, the people of Nagaland are still ‘sleeping over it.’ Sema cited the cases of Tripura and Assam where the local people have now come to be dominated by immigrants from Bangladesh.
“Letting them work is not a problem, but the dangerous act that is being committed by the elders in the villages is by putting their names in the electoral rolls. That is a legal situation, a legal status that we are giving the Bangladeshis. The next that happens is, because they come in such huge numbers and they get enrolled in the electoral rolls, during the election time they become a very serious force.”
And it was for this reason that no political party or government would seek “to do anything about chasing the IBI”, he said. “People like you and I must realise this, stand up together and begin to resolve.”
The inner line permit (ILP) as a mechanism to check the entry of the immigrants is as good as a passport, Sema reasoned while suggesting that the verification process to attain ILP should be made as strict as that of a passport.
“We have to make it compulsory that all criteria to obtain ILP must be upgraded. The state government must create an ILP department so that the norms required, the rules required are fulfilled before issue of ILP like that of the passport and as strict as the passport,” he said adding that the ILP department should be headed by “senior responsible people” who can network with “other people like Tripura and Assam”.
Sema also suggested forming a ‘state-level forum’ to tackle the issue.
An official of the Naga Students’ Federation reiterated the organisation’s contention that the provisions of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation of 1873 have become irrelevant in the present context.
Calling for a review of it, the NSF official said that the ILP restrictions should include Dimapur district as well.
His view was echoed by a representative of Western Sumi Hoho, who said that his organisation has already served a 30-day ultimatum to the state government to implement ILP restrictions in Dimapur. According to him, with or without the government’s sanction, after expiry of the deadline the WSH would be enforcing ILP restrictions in the western Sumi jurisdiction.
The chairman of Chumukedima village, Razouvotuo Chatsü also reiterated that the rally was not against the Muslims. “In fact we need the help of the Muslims as well as the Hindus here to help us identify the genuine citizens from the illegal immigrants.”
Dr. Khekugha Murru, general secretary of the Business Association of Nagas, spoke from the economic perspective – how the market has come under the control of the “IBIs” with the help of some of the members of the Naga political groups.
He reasoned that even if the ILP were enforced in Dimapur, the migrant workers can always come and work for a certain period of time after which they simply have to renew their permit. Other speakers include representatives from NTC, CNTC, CPO CYO and AYO.
