KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday expressed shock and anger over what she described as the lynching of a migrant worker from Purulia district in Pune for speaking the Bengali language.
Terming the incident a “hate crime,” the CM demanded the immediate arrest of the perpetrators involved.
“I am shaken, enraged, and sickened beyond words by the barbaric murder of Sukhen Mahato, a 24-year-old migrant worker from Bandwan in Purulia, the sole earning member of his family, in Pune,” Mamata said in a post on X, reacting strongly to the incident.
Sukhen Mahato, a resident of Tumrasol village in the Barabazar area of Purulia, was working as a laborer in Pune.
Mamata alleged that the incident was motivated by hatred and constituted a targeted killing. She also demanded swift action against the culprits and assured administrative support to the deceased’s family.
“This is nothing short of a hate crime. A young man was hunted, tortured, and murdered for his language, identity, and roots. This is the direct consequence of a climate where xenophobia is weaponized, and innocents are turned into targets,” she said in her X post.
“I demand immediate arrests and exemplary punishment for the perpetrators. To Sukhen’s family, I say that Bengal stands with you in this hour of unimaginable grief. No effort will be spared to secure justice,” she added, sharing video footage purportedly showing the blood-drenched body of the victim.
Following Mamata’s statement, Pune rural police said the murder occurred after an argument between Sukhen Mahato and two individuals while in a drunken state.
Preliminary police investigations suggest that the incident, which took place on the evening of February 9 in Koregaon under the Shikrapur police station area, was the result of a personal dispute, with no other angle involved. The deceased worked at a local factory unit.
The incident has further fueled an already heated political climate in Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections scheduled for April-May this year. The ruling Trinamool Congress has consistently accused its main opposition, the BJP, of inciting hatred against Bengali-speaking migrant workers and labeling them as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.
On Monday, BJP leader and former Bengal president Dilip Ghosh accused the Trinamool government of failing to protect Hindus in the state, citing an increase in atrocities against women and attacks on opposition workers.