An association of Nasya Sheikhs (Rajbanshi Muslims) flagged a slew of demands in Cooch Behar on Tuesday and asked the Election Commission not to conduct a special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in Bengal.
Around 4,000 members of the community assembled on the Raasmela Ground of the town and took out a march to the district magistrate’s office under the banner of Nasya Sheikh Unnayan Parishad through different streets of the town.
A delegation submitted to the DM’s office memoranda addressed to President Droupadi Murmu and chief minister Mamata Banerjee.
“We want the ECI to stop conducting SIR in our state. Also, the torture unleashed by the police on the Bengali-speaking migrant workers in the BJP-ruled states should be stopped immediately,” said Aminal Haque, general secretary of the Parishad.
Among other demands organisation has mentioned in their representation are conferment of citizenship on the sons of the soil, including some members of the Nasya Sheikh community, and allowing registry and transfer of ownership of land in the erstwhile Bangladeshi enclaves of the district, which have merged with the Indian mainland back in 2015.
“The President of India and the state government should consider our demands. Or else, we will intensify our movement,” said Haque.
In the course of the programme, the rallyists also raised a political demand and said that the Trinamool Congress should field members of the community in the Assembly seats of the region.
“Around 60 lakh people of the Nasya Sheikh community live in north Bengal. For years, we have supported Trinamool and want the party to field candidates of our community in at least two (of nine) Assembly seats of Cooch Behar,” said Haque.
“Similarly, the ruling party of the state should field Nasya Sheikh candidates in at least 30 per cent of the total seats of north Bengal,” he added.
In north Bengal, there are 54 Assembly seats and votes of the Rajbanshi community, including the Nasya Sheikhs, decide the results of around 25 seats.
Those who attended the programme also mentioned that though the state has formed a development board for them but only two members of the community have been nominated as office bearers.
“Till date, the district magistrate of Cooch Behar is the ex-officio chairman of the development board and only two people from the community have been nominated as vice-chairman. We want the chairman to be someone from our community, and the state government should give it a thought,” said a representative of the Parishad.