The Meghalaya unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has called for the Meghalaya Residents Safety and Security Act (MRSSA) to be implemented fully in order to ensure that those individuals coming into the state are not illegal migrants or other undesirables.
“The BJP demands that the MRSSA be implemented in letter and spirit with immediate effect so that the local population isn’t overwhelmed by a deluge of unauthorised people entering our land from other countries,” Wankitbok Pohshna, the state BJP general secretary, said in a statement today.
Referring to a 30-day deadline from the Centre to all states to locate, identify and expel illegal migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar, Pohshna said, “Unchecked infiltration, aided by touts and political parties with vested vote bank interests, has continued for way too long, creating a demographic change across many parts of the country including Meghalaya.”
According to the BJP, the negative impact of illegal immigration can be felt in various areas of the state, including in Shillong city itself, raising serious concerns amongst the local population. However, the party did not provide any proof to back up its claims.
“The illegal migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar are placing a serious strain on the state’s resources and are also responsible for a deteriorating law and order situation, with the rise of petty crime in many areas being attributed to such illegal immigrants from the neighbouring countries,” Pohshna stated.
The BJP also stated that many of these people also carry an anti-India mindset and are therefore inimical to national security.
Task forces exist in every district that are responsible for the identification of illegal immigrants who have settled in Meghalaya. “However such a task force has not achieved much over the years considering the swelling ranks of Bangladeshi and Rohingyas in Meghalaya as most local people would testify,” Pohshna alleged, while calling for an overhaul of the task force and expansion to include headmen and dorbars of each locality who can assist in identifying people who don’t belong to the area.
