Murshidabad (West Bengal) [India], January 18 : Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday criticised the West Bengal government over the Beldanga protest following the alleged killing of a migrant worker in Jharkhand, accusing it of failing to understand the public anger over the incident.
Questioning the repeated attacks on migrant workers, Chowdhury said their concerns are being ignored.
"The state government is not trying to understand why there is so much outrage among the people...Why are the migrant labourers being constantly attacked?...No one is ready to listen to their grievances," Chowdhury told ANI.
Alauddin Sheikh, a Bengali migrant worker in Jharkhand, was allegedly murdered, following which unrest broke out in the Beldanga area of Murshidabad district. On Friday, Sheikh's family members and local residents blocked National Highway 12 and disrupted rail traffic by setting tyres ablaze on tracks under the Sealdah railway division at Beldanga as part of the protest.
Violence continued on Saturday, with protesters from the Beldanga Block Road blocking roads and demanding justice for the deceased labourer. Security forces were deployed in the area to restore normalcy and prevent further escalation.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Shankar Ghosh on Saturday alleged that anti-national elements were attempting to disrupt the country by creating unrest and chaos.
Speaking to ANI, Ghosh said, "The job of anti-national elements is to disrupt the country by any means necessary, create issues, cause destruction, road blockades, and general chaos. Those who think about the country's best interests would never do such things... These anti-national forces receive help from outside the country..."
Earlier on Friday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP's "double-engine government" of fostering violence against migrant workers in states ruled by the party.
Meanwhile, TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said he had spoken to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren soon after learning about Alauddin Sheikh's death and was assured that necessary action would be taken. He also announced Rs 2 lakh in financial assistance for the victim's family and said Sheikh's wife had been provided a government job.