Speaking at a programme in Jaipur, Congress Chief Whip and Rajasthan MLA Rafeek Khan on 26 May criticised the state government and the police for picking up thousands from Jaipur city, the majority from Shekhawati, alleging that they are Bangladeshis and Rohingya. He said that the Police have picked around 2000-2500 people, asked for their ID cards and passports and later took them into custody. Khan asserted that they are being wrongfully and forcefully taken into custody.
Rafeek Khan, a two-time MLA from Adarsh Nagar constituency in Rajasthan, commented that the move came from an order stating that Bangladeshi Rohingya are wandering around everywhere.
“These are labourers, they don’t have any passports. One woman was found whose land records date back to 1960, even before Bangladesh was formed.” Khan said. He was addressing a gathering at the 8th National Convention of ‘Roj-Roti Adhikar Abhiyan’, the Right to Food Campaign in Jaipur, on the role of political parties in ensuring the programme’s goals.
“I managed to get around 2,000-2,500 people released from custody. Not a single person was Bangladeshi,” he said.
He also criticised the state government’s move to remove names from the list of beneficiaries of the food security scheme. The Rajasthan State Government had blocked 3.4 million Ration cards whose Electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) was not completed by January 31. As a result, thousands of families have been forced out of the public distribution system.
In the recent crackdown in Gujarat, more than 7000 homes were demolished by the authorities in Ahmedabad, alleging that they are illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.
