Former Deputy Speaker Dilip Kumar Paul visits family members of Subrata Dey at his residence in Krishnai in Goalpara district on Sunday. Subrata died under mysterious circumstances in a detention camp following two days of hunger strike. Photo: Northeast Now

Former Deputy Speaker of Assam and sitting MLA from Silchar, Dilip Kumar Paul, came down heavily on the state government’s failure in protecting the Bengali Hindus from being classified as a doubtful voter (D-voter).

Meeting the family members of Subrata Dey at his residence in Krishnai under Goalpara district, who died under mysterious circumstances in a detention camp out there, a few days back, Dilip Paul said, “I don’t understand how a person who ran his family by selling tea, and likewise, has in his possession so many documental records prior to 1971, can be sent to a detention camp.”

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He also questioned whether sending Hindu Bengalis to detention camp is their Rajdharma (supreme duty of the government or rulers).

Speaking later at Sankardev Sishu Niketan in Karmakar para of Krishnai, Dilip Paul said, “As per the record books of BJP and the RSS a ‘Hindu’ cannot be a foreigner, then why so many Hindu Bengalis are being marked as a foreigner and sent to detention camps to face torture.”

He added, “I would request the state government to fulfill their Rajdharma and reiterated, if every day in the state of Assam, Hindu Bengalis are stamped as a D-voter and ostracized, what else can be expected from other states. The way every now and then a Hindu Bengali is being classified as a D-voter, cannot be acceptable.”

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In his meeting with the residents at Karmakar para, he appealed to all Hindu Bengalis to unite as he believes Hindu Bengalis cannot be a foreigner and to protect the right Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016, needs to be passed at the earliest.

Dilip Paul also talked to the Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police of Goalpara district over phone and asked them to expedite the postmortem report of Subrata Dey who died inside the detention camp and asked them to take care of the family members especially his two children.

Later, before leaving Krishnai for Guwahati, Paul handed a cheque of Rs 15,000 personally to wife of late Subrata Dey.