Kolkata (West Bengal) [India] May 21 : Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar has reiterated the Centre's stand on illegal infiltration and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), saying that the government's policy is "detect, delete and deport" and asserting that India is not a "Dharamshala".
Speaking to ANI here, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Majumdar on Wednesday said the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is meant to provide a pathway to citizenship for refugees, while those not covered under its provisions would have to return to their countries of origin.
The Union MoS said, "The Home Minister at the Centre has said it many times that detect, delete and deport. India is not a 'Dharamshala'. The refugees through CAA will get citizenship, but those who are not refugees will have to go back."
He further said that arrangements were being strengthened to secure the border in West Bengal and claimed that pending issues related to land transfer had earlier delayed fencing work along the international border.
Additionally, Majumdar said, "The intentions of our government, headed by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, are very clear. Our government has decided that the land in Bengal, which the previous government had not given it, due to which the BSF was unable to fence it, and the entire border area of about 550 kilometres remained unfenced, which led to illegal activities by infiltrators. Now our government has given it, and with this, fencing will also be done."
Notably, West Bengal is currently governed by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. This comes after the BJP's victory in the state, which marked a significant moment for the party as it has been for long a marginal player in the state dominated for years by the Congress, Left parties and later Trinamool Congress.
The BJP won 206 seats in West Bengal, outperforming its 77-seat tally in the 2021 Assembly elections. Trinamool Congress, which swept the last assembly poll by winning 212 seats, finished a distant second with 80 seats.