Taking a historic step before the Lok Sabha elections, the Modi government has implemented the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
While there is resentment among the opposition parties on this step of the Central Government, on the other hand there is also celebration.
CAA is being celebrated in Mamata Banerjee’s state West Bengal. A section of the Matua community of West Bengal claimed CAA as a second Independence Day for them.
As soon as the Narendra Modi government implemented CAA on Monday, reactions are coming from across the country. There is a different atmosphere among the people in North 24 Parganas of West Bengal.
Who is the Matua community?
The Matua community, originally from East Pakistan, is a vulnerable section of Hindus. These people came to India during the India-Pakistan partition and after the creation of Bangladesh.
This community, with a population of about 30 lakh in West Bengal, lives in Nadia and North and South 24 Parganas districts bordering Bangladesh. They dominate more than 30 assembly seats in the state.
History of Matua Community
Matua Mahasangh is a religious reform movement that started in Bengal, undivided India around 1860. Presently people of Matua community are in both India and Bangladesh.
The Matua community is a vulnerable section of Hindus, whose followers came to India after partition and the creation of Bangladesh. This community, which challenged the caste system of Hindus, was started by Harichandra Thakur.
Harichandra had left such an impression in his community that the people of the community started considering him as the incarnation of God. With this the community also expanded.
Later the Thakur family settled in West Bengal from Bangladesh. The Thakur family remained revered by the community from generation to generation. Later, Harichandra Thakur’s great grandson Parmarth Ranjan Thakur became the representative of the community.
It is noteworthy that with the release of CAA rules, Modi government will now start providing Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants who came to India from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan till 31 December 2014.
These include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians.