More than 1,100 complaints of harassment against Bengali-speaking migrant workers have been recorded in the past 10 months, throwing a sharp light on the vulnerabilities of India’s informal labour economy and the fault lines around language and migration.
Most complaints originate from BJP-ruled states
The West Bengal Migrants Welfare Board has received 1,143 complaints since March, ranging from verbal abuse and physical assault to unlawful detention and damage to property, its chairman Samirul Islam said on Monday. All complaints were attended to by the board, he added, through legal aid, intervention with local authorities, or by facilitating the return of workers to the state.
Also Read | Gunfire over land dispute claims life of minor in Islampur area
The data points to a pattern concentrated in several BJP-ruled states. Of the total cases, 546 originated from Odisha, followed by Haryana (236), Rajasthan (110) and Maharashtra (62). Islam said around 95 people were detained merely for speaking Bengali under suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals, though all were later found to be Indian citizens.
India’s migration economy is vast and largely unorganised. Islam said nearly 38% of the country’s population qualifies as migrants, with around 30 lakh Bengali-speaking workers employed outside West Bengal, mostly in informal sectors such as construction, manufacturing and services. “Migration is not a crime,” he said, arguing that suspicion-based action undermines the federal structure and free movement of labour.
Beyond individual incidents, the figures underline the structural risks migrant workers face in a system with weak documentation, limited social security and uneven enforcement. Two migrants were lynched in separate incidents and another reportedly suffered grievous injury, Islam said, without naming states beyond Odisha and another BJP-ruled region.
Rejecting the claim that the issue is religion-specific, Islam said many of those harassed belong to Hindu communities, including Matuas and Rajbangshis. “This is not about faith or party affiliation. It reflects a broader anti-Bengali mindset,” he said, adding that even detainees from a BJP minister’s constituency in north Bengal were released following intervention from the Trinamool Congress leadership.
Also Read | Son of Trinamool leader among three sentenced to life in Hanskhali gang rape and murder case
The board has leaned increasingly on technology to manage the response. A dedicated helpline and WhatsApp number have been set up to handle complaints and queries, while SMS alerts are being sent to registered migrant workers offering assistance related to documentation and the ongoing Special Intensive Revision exercise. Officials said the board is also mapping vacancies and wage data to support migrants returning to the state.
As internal migration continues to fuel India’s urban and industrial growth, the West Bengal data offers a stark reminder: without stronger safeguards, the country’s mobile workforce remains exposed—economically productive, yet socially fragile
