CPI condemns detention of 44 workers from J-K in Assam

New Delhi, Nov 18 (PTI) The Communist Party of India (CPI) on Tuesday condemned the detention of 44 workers from Jammu and Kashmir at the New Tinsukia Railway station in Assam, and alleged that similar episodes of profiling and harassment have become increasingly common in BJP-ruled states.

The CPI, in a statement issued here, urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to act immediately to ensure the safety, dignity and Constitutional rights of all Kashmiris living and working across India.

"The CPI strongly condemns the incident of 'detention by locals' of 44 workers from Jammu and Kashmir at Hijuguri near the New Tinsukia Railway Station in Assam," the Left party said.

"Despite the Assam Police themselves confirming that all the workers possessed valid identity documents, they were rounded up merely on the basis of suspicion and appearance. Such unlawful actions constitute a serious violation of the Constitutional rights of the people of J-K," it said.

The CPI said the incident is not an aberration.

"Similar episodes of profiling and harassment have become increasingly common in BJP-ruled states such as Assam and Haryana, including the recent controversial notice in Gurugram mandating compulsory registration of Kashmiri residents," it said.

"These actions reflect a disturbing pattern in line with the BJP’s broader agenda of polarisation and portraying Kashmiris as objects of suspicion," it said.

Asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP frequently make claims about reducing the “distance between Delhi and Kashmir” and bridging the “distance of the heart”, the Left party said, "yet such repeated harassment of ordinary Kashmiri workers raises serious questions about the sincerity of those assertions." "The CPI urges the Union home minister to act immediately to ensure the safety, dignity and Constitutional rights of all Kashmiris living and working across India," it added.

A group of 44 people claiming to be from Jammu and Kashmir were detained for ascertaining their 'identity' at the New Tinsukia Railway station in Assam on Monday, police said. PTI AO AO MNK MNK