Now, ‘Vote Jihad 2’: Fadnavis govt puts birth certificates under watch in anti-illegal Bangladeshi campaign

The drumming up of the BJP run has coincided with the constabulary claiming that a idiosyncratic who had crossed implicit illegally from Bangladesh was down the high-profile stabbing of Bollywood prima Saif Ali Khan astatine his home. Following his arrest, the Mumbai Police stepped up its thrust against amerciable immigrants.

Now, the Mahayuti authorities has raised concerns astir “the abrupt rise” successful the fig of applications for commencement certificates by individuals successful the 30 to 75 property radical successful the state, and directed territory authorities to “exercise caution”.

In 40 places, including Malegaon, Amravati, Akola and Yavatmal with sizeable Muslim populations, commencement certificate applications of those supra the property of 30 person been halted for now. In Malegaon, an SIT has been instituted to specifically look into the matter.

Fadnavis, who besides holds the Home portfolio, made his ‘Vote Jihad 2’ assertion astatine the BJP authorities enforcement gathering successful Shirdi past week, saying the enactment needs to “get acceptable to combat this”. He added: “In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, we saw a definite assemblage ballot en masse… Now, Bangladeshi infiltrators are seeking commencement certificates successful Maharashtra arsenic portion of Vote Jihad Part 2.”

He added: “More than 100 cases person been reported successful Malegaon, Amravati, Nashik tehsil, of fake commencement certificates acquired by amerciable Bangladeshis supra the property of 50, utilizing bogus documents.”

His authorities was committed to combat “the infiltration menace”, the CM said. “We volition spot to it that not a azygous amerciable Bangladeshi is allowed to unrecorded successful Maharashtra.”

Senior BJP person Kirit Somaiyya, who is spearheading the enactment complaint against alleged Bangladeshi infiltration, told The Indian Express: “There are 40 mean and tiny towns wherever applications for commencement certificates by those betwixt the ages of 30 and 75 person seen an antithetic rise. The numbers travel to 2 lakh… Inspections astatine half-a-dozen places, including Malegaon, Amravati and Akola, amusement that amerciable Muslim Bangladeshis marque up a sizeable fig among them.”

In 2023, the Centre had eased the process of contented of commencement and decease certificates, by authorising tehsildars to grip the aforesaid – earlier these were issued by magistrates. It besides acceptable circumstantial clip frames for completing the exercise.

Somaiya claimed this had made it easier to get commencement certificates by applicants getting distant with presenting fake ration, Aadhaar and PAN cards.

A elder BJP person said that portion the identification of amerciable immigrants was an administrative exercise, “in immoderate run that is successful the larger involvement of the country, the relation of a governmental enactment is important”. “Our run volition assistance make consciousness among the people.”

The Sena (UBT), which belongs to the other Maha Vikas Aghadi camp, has besides expressed “concern” implicit amerciable immigrants, but laid the blasted astatine the Centre’s door, noting that monitoring of borders falls nether the Union government.

Following the apprehension successful the Saif Ali Khan case, Sena (UBT) person and erstwhile curate Aaditya Thackeray said: “What’s the constituent of conscionable talking if you cannot act? If an amerciable Bangladeshi has been surviving (in India) for months oregon years, it shows the Centre’s nonaccomplishment to defender the borders.”

The Congress has accused the BJP of resorting to “sensitive issues again to polarise the people”. Congress main Nana Patole said thing was stopping the Centre from acting strongly. “On matters of nationalist information and infiltration, the authorities should instrumentality indispensable steps. Why play politics?”

Flush from its stunning triumph successful the Assembly polls, the ruling Mahayuti is keen connected holding the long-delayed section assemblage polls by April 2025. Sources said the enactment is assured of getting the OBC quota hurdle cleared successful courts by then. Among the section bodies which volition spot polls is the prestigious and cash-rich Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, which has been a domain of the Shiv Sena. This is the archetypal clip the Sena volition contention the polls arsenic 2 factions.

While the BJP had tally an assertive Hindutva run talking of ‘love jihad’ and ‘land jihad’ up of the Lok Sabha polls past year, with rallies crossed Maharashtra, aft it finished acold down the MVA successful the results, it had added ‘vote jihad’ to its claims.

The complaint was specifically prompted by the BJP’s nonaccomplishment from the Dhule Lok Sabha seat. Of the six Assembly segments falling nether the seat, the BJP’s Subhash Bhamre led successful each but the Muslim-dominated Malegaon Central.

If Fadnavis talked of ‘vote jihad’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi successful his run for the Assembly polls talked of ‘Ek hain toh harmless hain (Together, we are safe)’, portion Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath gave the slogan ‘Batenge toh katenge (Divided we volition beryllium finished)’.

An anti-illegal migrant run is not caller successful Maharashtra politics, having been a portion of predetermination manifestos of some the Shiv Sena and BJP successful the aboriginal 1990s. During the 1980 Assembly polls, the right-wing parties had accused the Congress of “sheltering amerciable immigrants successful Trombay” to usage them arsenic a ballot bank. At the time, the Congress’s Javed Khan represented the constituency.