Guwahati: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticized the BJP and called for Opposition unity on Tuesday after learning that Assam’s Foreigners Tribunal had issued a National Register of Citizens (NRC) notice to a resident of Cooch Behar in West Bengal, declaring him an illegal migrant.
Reacting to the notice served to Uttam Kumar Brajabasi, a 50-year-old Rajbanshi man from Dinhata, Banerjee expressed outrage, calling the move “a systematic assault on democracy.”
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She emphasized that Brajabasi has lived in West Bengal for more than five decades and holds valid identification documents.
Taking to her official social media handle, Banerjee posted, “This alarming situation calls for urgent unity among all Opposition parties to stand up against BJP’s divisive and oppressive machinery. Bengal will not stand by as the constitutional fabric of India is torn apart.”
She further accused the BJP-led government in Assam of overstepping its jurisdiction by allegedly attempting to enforce NRC measures in West Bengal. “This is a premeditated attempt to intimidate, disenfranchise, and target marginalized communities,” she wrote, adding that such actions aim to erase the identity of Bengal’s people.
Brajabasi, the individual named in the notice, confirmed he had never lived in Assam. “My parents and I have always lived in Bengal. I’m 50 years old, and yet they’re asking me to prove my citizenship,” he told reporters.
His lawyer, Apurba Singh, revealed that the Cooch Behar SP’s office delivered the notice. “If the administration supports him, how did the notice come from the SP’s office?” Singh also questioned.
Udayan Guha, North Bengal Development Minister, also condemned the incident. “Uttam has publicly stated he never visited Assam. Yet, the Kamrup SP sent him this notice. This is nothing but targeted harassment. The BJP stands against the Rajbanshi community,” he alleged.
Meanwhile, political tensions continued to rise, with local BJP leaders defending their position. A BJP functionary questioned the state’s response: “How could he get the notice? What is the administration doing?” Former BJP State President Sukanta Majumdar called the episode “a false ploy by the Trinamool Congress,” insisting, “The Assam government cannot target a Bengali citizen in Bengal through NRC.”
The controversy follows several recent incidents in which migrant workers from West Bengal, employed across India, have allegedly been pushed into Bangladesh by security agencies. The West Bengal government has intervened in several such cases and repatriated those affected.
Banerjee also raised concerns about electoral roll revisions in neighboring Bihar. She accused the Election Commission of attempting to implement NRC “through the backdoor,” suggesting a broader plan to undermine the citizenship status of vulnerable populations.