West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee will lead a major rally in Kolkata on Wednesday to protest the alleged illegal detention and deportation attempts of migrant workers from West Bengal, whom police in Chhattisgarh labelled as undocumented Bangladeshi immigrants.
The protest comes after eight migrant workers from Nadia district were detained by Chhattisgarh Police earlier this week. According to the Trinamool Congress (TMC), these workers were picked up without notice, their phones seized, and no information was shared with their families or the West Bengal government.
“Eight construction workers from Nadia, employed in Bastar, Chhattisgarh, were forcibly picked up by [chief minister] @vishnudsai’s @CG_Police. No information was shared with their families, the GoWB, or even @WBPolice. Their phones were seized. They were thrown behind bars,” the TMC posted on X.
“This is state-sponsored abduction. Let BJP be warned: Respect existence or expect resistance. We will not let our people be criminalised, dehumanised, or silenced.”
Police Response
Quoting Kondagaon Police Superintendent Akshay Kumar, media reports said the men were released on Monday evening after being detained for failing to produce identity documents even after a month of working in the area.
Nationwide Detentions Spark Row
TMC leaders claim that similar detentions have taken place across BJP-ruled states including Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Delhi. Some individuals were reportedly deported to Bangladesh before being rescued in June.
“The detentions are continuing. A man named Siroz Alam Mian, who has been working in Delhi for years, has been detained. I know this family personally,” said TMC leader Partha Pratim Roy.
Wednesday’s protest also coincides with the Delhi government’s scheduled filing of a report in the Calcutta High Court regarding six Bengali-speaking individuals—including two minors—detained from Delhi’s Rohini area in June.
Assam CM Reacts to TMC Complaint
The TMC has also lodged a complaint against Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, accusing him of targeting Bengali-speaking citizens in the state. Sarma responded on X:
“Assam has been waging a relentless war against illegal infiltration of Bangladeshi Muslims for several decades… The recent attempt by the TMC to distort my remarks is a desperate ploy to shield Muslim infiltrators from Bangladesh.”
TMC Counters With NRC and Aadhaar Data
TMC’s Debangshu Bhattacharya questioned Sarma’s targeting of Muslims, pointing to the 2019 NRC list:
“In the final NRC list, out of the 19.6 lakh people excluded, 12 lakh were Bengali Hindus. Was their faith the problem too? Or was it their language?”
TMC also slammed the BJP over identity documentation, sharing a video of PM Modi praising Aadhaar, and questioned the government’s narrative:
“Modi ji called Aadhaar a ‘symbol of empowerment.’ Well then, who’s responsible for turning this ‘symbol’ into a ‘national security threat’?”
As tensions rise, this issue is fast becoming a flashpoint in the lead-up to the 2026 West Bengal Assembly Elections, with both parties locked in a battle over identity, documentation, and political messaging.