Bengali Migrant Crisis in India's Capital: A New Political Flashpoint

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched a scathing critique against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday, alleging targeted harassment of Bengali migrant workers in Delhi's Jai Hind Colony. In a passionate Facebook post, Banerjee accused the BJP-led government of cutting essential services like water and electricity to displace Bengali residents in Vasant Kunj.

Banerjee expressed her alarm over reports of forced eviction underway, questioning the democratic values of India if basic rights are denied. She criticized the BJP for criminalizing the Bengali identity and accused the party of treating Bengali-speaking Indians as infiltrators in their homeland.

The Chief Minister claimed that the BJP, after political failures in West Bengal, is strategically targeting Bengali communities in BJP-held states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Madhya Pradesh. Committed to national solidarity, she pledged to raise the issue on various platforms, amid escalating tensions between TMC and BJP over alleged detentions in Odisha.

(With inputs from agencies.)