Mumbai, Jan 7 (IANS) In a sharp attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, NCP leader Nawab Malik on Wednesday accused the party of targeting the Muslim community under the pretext of identifying Bangladeshis.
Taking a dig at the Mumbai BJP chief Amit Satam, who claimed a rise in illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators in areas like Malvani, Kurla, and Mankhurd-Shivajinagar, Malik said, “Before speaking on Bangladeshi infiltration, first send Sheikh Hasina back to Bangladesh.”
He further claimed that the current plight of Hindus in Bangladesh is a result of the situation surrounding Hasina’s exit and her stay in India.
He urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to take the matter seriously, noting that the BJP’s stance appears contradictory.
Malik was speaking to reporters on Wednesday after the release of the NCP’s manifesto for BMC elections.
Malik alleged that the BJP’s move to target the Muslim community was to polarise the voters and create a divide between Hindu and Muslim communities during the ongoing campaign for the BMC elections.
Malik dismissed the BJP's infiltration claims as a recurring political tactic used for the last 30 to 40 years.
“The identification and deportation of illegal immigrants is an ongoing legal process handled by the Mumbai Police and the courts under the jurisdiction of both State and Central governments,” he said and alleged that the BJP only raises the "Bangladeshi" issue when elections are around the corner to polarise voters.
He reminded the BJP that during Lal Krishna Advani’s tenure as Home Minister, there was even a proposal for "work permits" for Bangladeshis.
Criticising Amit Satam’s understanding of Mumbai’s demographics, Malik remarked that despite being a multi-term MLA, Satam seems unaware of the ground reality.
“There are 60,000 Muslim voters in Satam's own constituency. Why doesn't he mention them? He goes to their homes, eats with them, and greets them warmly, yet targets the community elsewhere for political gains," he added sarcastically.
Earlier, Satam at the press conference questioned how many Bangladeshis and Rohingya infiltrators were settled in Mumbai by a minister who served in Uddhav Thackeray’s Cabinet.
Areas such as Malvani, Malad, Mankhurd, Deonar and Kurla have witnessed the construction of hundreds of thousands of illegal slums with political blessings, he said.
"How did the voter numbers in wards like Malvani, Malad–Madh, Kurla and Chandivali increase by nearly 50 per cent compared to 2017, even as South Mumbai saw a decline in voters. Who owns the nearly 10,000 illegal buildings in Malvani? Who lives there? And who made these people voters?” asked Satam.
--IANS
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