Himanta opposes the term ‘migrant workers’, says none outsider in this land

June 4: The term “migrant labourers” has gained currency with the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic which followed the nationwide lockdown. However, the use of this term has not gone down well with Assam heavyweight BJP leader and minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. On Thursday, taking to his twitter handle, Himanta wrote, “I am aghast at the second-class citizen approach by some state governments towards our people. I am also shocked at the use of the term #MigrantWorkers. They have contributed to your economic prosperity. How can they be the #outsider?”

The minister further said that, “We in Assam are, and shall continue to give the best medical assistance to all our people. All those coming home are our own. India is ONE. Our Citizens are ONE. No ONE is outsider on this land. Let’s not divide on frivolous grounds.”

Taking a dig at the role of the state governments of Maharashtra and Delhi, Himanta Biswa Sarma wrote, “We are all Indians. The state governments should take as much care of a citizen from outside state as of a person from Mumbai, Pune or Delhi. Please don’t disown them in times of crisis like this, for they have worked very hard to contribute to the state’s economy.”

Biswa Sarma also said, “Our revered and hard-working people from Assam, Bihar and West Bengal have worked with great passion yet in wake of #COVID pandemic they have been left to fend for themselves. How insensitive of Governments in Maharashtra and Delhi to have done this discrimination.”