Citizens
Of Twelve Hours
By
Wali Laskar
20 December,
2007
Countercurrents.org
They
are Indian citizens. But their citizenship is limited to twelve hours
only. They lose their citizenship for the twelve hours of the night.
Thousands of Indian citizens living in Indian soil have been
deprived of their citizenship for twelve hours daily for decades. The
victims are resident of villages situated in fringe area of about four
thousand kilometres long India-Bangladesh International Boundary Lines.
There are more than 170 villages along the Indo- Bangla Boundary line
right from Kolkata to Tripura. These villages could not be covered by
the barbed-wire- fencing erected in the boundary line for technical
reasons. The villages have been abandoned. So are the villagers. Everyday
when clock strikes six the gates of the barbed wire fence got closed.
The State of India abandons its own citizens living outside the fence
for the rest of the time till the clock again strikes six in the morning.
The gates of Indian State remain open for its citizens for just twelve
hour of daytime.
After partition
in 1947 there were unresolved boundary disputes
between India and Pakistan. After the birth of Bangladesh in 1971
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of India and President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
of Bangladesh apparently resolved the disputes entering into a pact
according to which there would remain one hundred metres of land between
the border line of the two countries as 'No men's land' where no state
would have any control. Following the pact no plan has been formulated
or implemented for rehabilitation of the citizens who have been living
in this abandoned NO MEN'S LAND. They too have been abandoned and ignored
callously.
After the
doors are closed at 6pm everyday darkness engulfs these villages as
well as the minds of the villagers. They leave heir lives and property
at the mercy of the thieves, dacoits, goons and other anti-social elements
who regularly visit them, mostly from Bangladesh. No state provides
them with any semblance of security of life and property. If anybody
needs immediate medical attention in night there is no way other than
to wait for the gates to open. If his condition does not permit to wait
he has do succumb to death. For marriages and other social functions
the villagers have to take prior permission from the concerned District
Magistrate so the gates would open for the visitors to come back.
Veteran journalist
Mrinal Talukdar of UNI made a short film of 20
minutes on the plight of such 'NO BODY'S MEN'. He shot this film at
Lafsai and Jarapata, two such villages situated at Sutarkandi area of
Indo-Bangla border in Karimganj district of Assam. He had to obtain
clearance from Union Home Ministry for shooting there after an eight-and-half-
month-long period. The film 'NO BODY'S MEN' has been included in the
list of 13 movies selected for special viewing in he International Film
Festival to be held from 4 to 9 February, 2008 in Mumbai. Mr. Talukdar
has done a great job.
Barak Human
Rights Protection Committee is contemplating to send a fact finding
team to Sutarkandi. The Committee will act on the recommendations of
the team to get full-time citizenship for the part time citizens.
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