Screengrab from the video shared by Trinamool Congress’s Twitter handle.
As many as 44 Bengali-speaking persons continue to remain in custody of the Jharsuguda Police in Odisha, after their documentary proof of Indian nationality failed to convince the police.
According to the police, 403 persons were allowed to return to their workplaces, while 44 were detained in two holding centres in the district.
Fearing detention and the distress it could cause their families, over 150 migrant labourers in neighbouring Sambalpur district have voluntarily approached local police stations to submit documents such as Aadhaar cards, birth certificates, voter ID cards, and even land records to prove their Indian citizenship.
This move follows the continued detention of 44 Bengali-speaking individuals in Jharsuguda district, whose documents reportedly failed to convince law enforcement officials of their nationality. The incident sparked widespread outrage in the country, particularly in West Bengal.
In the aftermath, authorities appear to have scaled back efforts to round up migrant workers in large numbers. However, sporadic detentions continue, most notably in the Karanjia subdivision of Mayurbhanj district where workers have reportedly been picked up at random.
Many of those previously detained in Jharsuguda remain shaken by the experience. “Most migrant workers come from economically weaker sections. It is extremely difficult to get our documents sent through WhatsApp or delivered physically. The biggest hurdle is the absence of birth certificates, which most of us simply don’t have,” said one of the released workers.
He recounted the case of a fellow labourer from Murshidabad, West Bengal, who had submitted a land document covering three generations of his family, along with an Aadhaar card. “But because he had married a woman from Bangladesh and was receiving phone calls from the neighbouring country, the police remained unconvinced. He continued to be held in custody,” he said.
Some workers also criticised the timing of their release. “We were let go around 1:30 a.m., as if the police didn’t want us to walk out with dignity in broad daylight,” said another.
The detained migrant workers in Jharsuguda included both Hindus and Muslims. Most of them work as masons or daily vendors, and Bengali-speaking labourers from West Bengal and Jharkhand form the backbone of the construction workforce, especially for private and individual housing projects.
Published – July 12, 2025 12:11 am IST
