Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday launched a sharp critique of certain opposition parties, alleging they are protecting and treating infiltrators as a “vote bank,” which he warned is a profound threat to the country’s democratic structure.
Delivering the Narendra Mohan Memorial Lecture on the topic of “Infiltration (ghuspaith), demographic change and democracy,” the Home Minister questioned why infiltration remains a severe issue in states like Assam and West Bengal but is virtually non-existent along the borders of Gujarat and Rajasthan.
Centre Alone Cannot Stop Infiltration
Shah asserted that infiltration is a national concern, not a political one. He rebutted the opposition’s argument that it is solely the Centre’s responsibility to stop illegal border crossings because the Border Security Force (BSF) is under its control.
“The Centre alone cannot stop infiltration. State governments protect such infiltrators as some parties see a vote bank in them,” Shah stated. He highlighted that while fencing is used, some border areas cannot be secured due to challenging topography.
He asked how infiltration can be curbed if a person enters the country illegally and the district administration fails to identify them, and stressed the need for local governments to cooperate.
Cites Census Data on Demographic Change
Shah backed his argument by citing figures from the 2011 Census to highlight a significant demographic shift in the eastern regions of the country.
“In Assam, the decadal growth rate of the Muslim population in the 2011 census was 29.6 per cent. This is not possible without infiltration,” he claimed. He further added that in many districts of West Bengal, this growth rate has reached 40 per cent, and in several border areas, it has climbed up to 70 per cent, calling it “clear evidence that infiltration has occurred in the past.”
The Home Minister also pointed to the “very significant decline” in the tribal population in Jharkhand, which he attributed to “infiltration from Bangladesh.”
He concluded by stressing the importance of understanding the clear difference between a refugee—who comes to India to save their religion—and an infiltrator—who enters illegally for economic or other reasons, warning that to confuse the two is to “deceive their own soul.”