Malda: Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Thursday struck a compassionate note while highlighting the alleged torture and humiliation faced by Bengal migrant workers in other states for speaking in Bengali.
Addressing a rally at the Jalanga MSK Ground, Banerjee listened to their grievances, announced a helpline for distressed workers, and later shared a meal with them.
Interacting with the migrants, Banerjee said: “People are being branded Bangladeshi only because they speak Bangla or say ‘Jai Bangla’. Speaking one’s mother tongue has now become a crime in some states.”
Assuring long-term solutions, Banerjee said his party would work towards a future where workers from Bengal would not be forced to migrate for survival. “We will collect detailed data of migrant workers over the next three months and take steps so that no one from Bengal has to leave the state for livelihood,” he said. Criticising the silence of MPs from ruling parties in other states, Banerjee said those elected to protect people had remained mute spectators while migrant workers were beaten, humiliated and driven out. He cited the case of a tribal migrant worker from Gazole, alleging that no BJP MP had spoken up for him.
As an immediate relief measure, Banerjee announced a dedicated helpline — 7887778877 — for distressed migrant workers in Malda. He assured that every complaint would be addressed and raised in Parliament.
Towards the end of the rally, Banerjee took questions from migrant workers and their family members and took responsibility for several cases. In a gesture that moved many, he later shared lunch with the workers at the same table, reinforcing the rally’s message of empathy, dignity
and solidarity.