BJP leaders rush to Matua bastion after Shah cancels visit; TMC says 'CAA promise false'

With Union Home Minister Amit Shah cancelling his visit to Matua stronghold Thakurnagar in North 24 Paragans district on Saturday, senior BJP leaders Kailash Viayvargiya and Mukul Roy met prominent members of the community and assured them that the central minister will hold a meeting for them "very soon". However, the ruling Trinamool has attacked the saffron party stating that it is confusing the Matuas and spreading false information regarding the citizenship issue. 

Addressing a press conference, senior TMC leader Subrata Mukherjee claimed that BJP was giving "false promises" to the Matua community. Referring to the assurances by BJP in the past about Citizenship Amendment Act among the Matuas, Mukherjee, who is also a state minister, said, "Matuas have always had citizenship in Bengal. They have voted then how can they not be the citizens?"

Mukherjee pointed out, "How can you give citizenship to those who are already citizens? Those who have ration cards are citizens. In November 2020 Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had distributed 25,000 land pattas to refugees from the Matua community. This land right document will ensure that they are citizens. Parliament rules were supposed to be framed within six months for Citizenship Amendment Act after the Lok Sabha polls. They (BJP) asked for more time to make rules, leaving thousands of people in uncertainty. Now they are using COVID- 19 as an excuse. All of this is false promise (jumla)," he added.

It is to be noted that in Lok Sabha elections, the Matuas voted en masse for BJP with hopes pinned on CAA, under the leadership of BJP MP from Bongaon, Santanu Thakur. Matuas are originally from East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh), and had started migrating to West Bengal in the 1950s, mostly due to religious persecution. In the Lok Sabha polls, the community, voted en-masse for BJP due to the CAA. However, sudden cancel of the plan has made BJP leaders rush to the Matua stronghold.

BJP leaders rush to Matua stronghold

Vijayvargiya, BJP national general secretary and Mukul Roy, the party's national vice-president, were closeted in an over an hour long meeting with party MP Santanu Thakur. They told the members of the community that Shah's visit to Thakurnagar was cancelled due to sudden developments in Delhi and that he will visit the place "very soon" and address the Matuas during his next visit to the state. Shah's two-day visit to West Bengal from Saturday was cancelled at the last minute following a blast outside the Israeli embassy in the national capital.

His proposed meeting at Thakurnagar assumes importance as the Matuas with an estimated population of 30 lakh in the state can influence the poll outcome in at least 60 assembly seats in Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas districts of poll-bound West Bengal. Polls are likely to be held in April- May this year.

Roy told reporters "Amit Shah spoke to Santanu Thakur about holding the proposed meeting on any coming day and asked the organizers not to dismantle the stage originally erected for the meeting. Please don't dismantle the stage and keep yourself ready for all last minute arrangements in 24-48 hour notice. My office will keep you posted," Roy quoted Shah as having told Santanu Thakur.

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BJP and its stance on CAA

On December 6, senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya, said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is likely to be implemented from January next year. Vijayvargiya added that the Centre is keen to grant citizenship to the large refugee population in the state. He also accused the ruling Trinamool Congress government of not being sympathetic to the cause of the refugees.

"We are hopeful that the process of granting citizenship to refugees under the CAA will begin from January next year. The Centre has passed the CAA with the honest intention of granting citizenship to persecuted refugees coming to our country from neighbouring nations," he said in North 24 Parganas. 

However, on December 20, Home Minister Amit Shah said that the rules of CAA are yet to be framed and the law will be acted upon after COVID vaccine inoculation is done. "Rules of CAA are yet to be framed. Due to Coronavirus, such a massive drive cannot be undertaken and hence after inoculation, we will think about it," said Shah. When asked about his 'understand the chronology' remark, Shah said, "Let the first part of the chronology be fulfilled".

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The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) seeks to grant citizenship to non-Muslim migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Jain and Parsi communities who came to the country from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan on or before December 31, 2014. The Parliament passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill on December 11, 2019, and President Ram Nath Kovind gave assent to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 on December 12.

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