Image courtesy: The Wire
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the guest of honour at the National Day programme of Bangladesh on March 26. But a highlight of his visit to Bangladesh is a trip to Orakandi the following day, where the main temple of the Hindu Matua community is located. It is noteworthy that this visit on March 27, coincides with the first phase of polling in West Bengal where the Matua community is influential in as many as 29 constituencies.
Transparency activist Saket Gokhale has written to the Election Commission of India (ECI) praying that media coverage of Modi’s visit to Orakandi should not be broadcast live, and his speech be monitored to ensure it doesn’t contain anything that can impact the Bengal elections. Gokhle said, “Modi is making this two day visit 200 km outside Dhaka just for campaigning on foreign soil targeting the Matua community in Bengal.”
Filed a representation affidavit with Election Commission regarding PM Modi’s visit to Orakandi in Bangladesh which is a shrine for Matua community that influences about 29 seats in Bengal.
Modi is making this visit on 27 March i.e. 1st day of Phase 1 polling in Bengal.
(1/2) pic.twitter.com/4Wc4B7WzIy
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) March 21, 2021
Gokhale has demanded that the ECI should get an advance copy of Modi’s speech and has also asked that PM Modi’s program at Orakandi be broadcast only after polling closes at 6 PM. Most crucial is that he has asked the EC to “Restrain BJP from using this alleged state visit of PM Modi for election campaigning.”
India has stated that the PM’s choosing Bangladesh as the first visit to a foreign country since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic “highlights the priority India attaches to Bangladesh.” However, a section of citizens of the neighbouring country differ. Hundreds of students and activists in Bangladesh are protesting Modi’s upcoming visit. The protesters also criticised Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for inviting Modi, saying the two countries had many disputed issues.
According to a report in the e-newsroom news portal, the Matuas are a “close-knit group in Bengal belonging to the Namashudra (Dalit/SC) community, who migrated from Bangladesh during and after Partition.” The community also has a “significant presence in four parliamentary seats” in West Bengal, “making them one of the biggest vote banks in the state” added the report. However, the Matuas are yet to get Indian Citizenship and Bharatiya Janata Party “had raised this issue just before the Lok Sabha polls in 2019 which led to them winning 18 out of 42 seats from Bengal,” stated the report. However, it added that the community was now irked because after amending India’s citizenship law i.e the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the Modi government has not been able to frame rules to address the issue. It is being reported that PM Modi’s visit to Orakandi during the Bangladesh visit is an “attempt at wooing the Matua voters in India.”
eNewsroom quoted Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy as saying, “It is unfortunate that PM Modi is using foreign soil for election purpose. We are also going to write to Election Commission about it. And as far as Matua community is concerned they are slipping out of the hands of BJP.”
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