ED raids at 17 locations in Jharkhand, West Bengal over Bangladeshi infiltration, recover fake passports, pistols, Aadhar cards

Ranchi: A day before the first poll of assembly elections in the state, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids on Tuesday at 17 locations in Jharkhand and West Bengal, targeting alleged money laundering tied to the illegal entry of Bangladeshi nationals. ED sleuths in the raids have seized fake Aadhar cards, forged passports and other incriminating objects.

According to a senior police official of Jharkhand Police, the ED conducted raids at different locations and have recovered illegal arms, immovable property documents, cash, jewellery, printing papers, printing machines, and blank proformas used for forging Aadhaar cards in raids in connection with illegal Bangladeshi infiltration, conducted at 17 locations in Jharkhand and West Bengal.

The ED in September had filed a PMLA case based on an FIR lodged at Bariyatu police station in Ranchi. According to the FIR, some Bangladeshi and Rohingya girls from Bangladesh were trafficked into Jharkhand. It is alleged that the girls had obtained identity documents, including Aadhaar, in Hindu names.

June FIR filed by Jharkhand Police in Ranchi, by a Bangladeshi woman who had entered India with the help of touts under the pretense of employment.

Police then had conducted raids and had apprehended six women from a local resort. Some of these women allegedly had obtained fake Aadhaar cards, reflecting the challenges associated with illegal identification. Police have charged the accused under several IPC sections, including cheating and forgery, along with violations of the Passport and Foreigners Act.

The alleged infiltration of Bangladeshi and Rohingya nationals has become a contentious election issue in Jharkhand.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP leaders during their election campaigns in the state have accused the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led coalition of facilitating infiltration to maintain a vote bank.

Modi has claimed that such infiltration is altering the demographic composition in Jharkhand’s tribal regions of Santhal Pargana and Kolhan. He has criticized the state government for not acknowledging the issue, despite a Jharkhand High Court order for an independent panel to investigate Bangladeshi infiltration.

In recent rallies, BJP leaders have promised a crackdown on illegal immigrants if elected. Amit Shah pledged to form a committee to identify and deport infiltrators and reclaim tribal land allegedly taken by Bangladeshi nationals. Shah accused Bangladeshi immigrants of marrying tribal women to gain access to land. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also criticized the JMM government for purportedly turning Jharkhand into a shelter for Rohingyas and Bangladeshis.

The Jharkhand Assembly elections are set in two phases, with the first round of voting on November 13 for 43 constituencies, followed by polling in 38 constituencies on November 20. By-elections for six assembly seats in West Bengal will also be held on Wednesday, increasing the political intensity surrounding the issue.