The Trinamool Congress has strongly refuted Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s contention that the steadily changing demographic patterns in Bengal, Assam and Jharkhand could lead to their “fall’’ and separation by 2051.
Questioning the correctness of the statistical figures provided by Sarma particularly on Assam and Bengal TMC MP Sushmita Dev said that contrary to the Assam Chief Minister’s claim that in 1950 Muslims accounted for 12 percent of population of that State it was 25 per cent by the records. Sarma said that the Muslim population had now gone up to 40 per cent in many areas.
“A false statement has come to light from Assam CM in Jharkhand. Firstly I want to tell that according to government data in 1952, 25 per cent of the Muslim population was registered,” wondering about basis on which Sarma established his argument “when there has been no census conducted since 2011,” Dev who also hails from the same region said. Sarma, during a press conference in Ranchi, said, changing demography was a big issue inAssam where the Muslim population has reached 40 per cent today. “In 1951, it was 12 per cent," he added.
Dev said, “I want to remind Assam CM that the Indian Government was supposed to conduct the population census but given the COVID-19 excuse, the census to date has not taken place...then how did the 40 per cent figure come from? The TMC MP also blamed the Chief Minister for not effectively sealing the Indo-Bangladesh border of his State.
Party leader Kunal Ghosh too questioned Sarma’s intention in raising such issues when elections will take place in Jharkhand in a few months from now. “Such statements are not to be taken seriously because by now they have been exposed … the BJP has lost its communal steam which is proved by the general elections … their graph will now start falling … they are making such statements because they are not confident of winning elections normally … they tried that technique in Bengal but Mamata Banerjee gave them a good lesson,” he said.
The Chief Minister had in an interview to a senior journalist of a national television channel had earlier claimed that the way the Muslim population was increasing in the States like Assam, Bengal and Jharkhand the Hindus could turn into minority in those places in a few decades from now.
For Bengal he said that presently the population of the State it was about 26 percent “but going by the projected population growth rate by 2041 it may go beyond 36 percent … the Hindus can be minority by that time … and by 2051 or if not so by 2061 these States will fall.” His statements were promptly lapped up by the Bengal BJP leaders who said such a situation could lead these three States to secede from the mainland.
Bengal Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari who had to take some barbs from his own party colleagues for advising the scrapping of Minority Morcha within the State BJP --- apparently because the Muslims were not voting for the party --- came out in support of Sarma saying that the Assam Chief Minister was correct in his reading of the situation.
“We have nothing against the local Muslims who have been living in India for generations … we are concerned about the Rohingyas who are steadily entering India through the unfenced borders of which there are about 72 in Bengal,” Adhikari said holding Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for the present situation.
