Special train for BJP voters from Surat to West Bengal; chaos for migrant workers

Ahmedabad: While chaos reigned at Udhna railway station in Surat on Sunday, where thousands of migrant workers from Bihar and Odisha rushed to board trains home, there was complete normalcy hours later as some 1,300 passengers departed for West Bengal by a special train.

These passengers, from various parts of West Bengal, work in Surat and are said to be BJP supporters. They are part of BJP’s plan to send 5,000 migrants to vote for “change”.

From the migrant city of Surat emerged two starkly different scenes in the past 24 hours. In one, complete chaos unfolded as thousands of migrant workers lined up outside the railway station — some jumping fences, others running clueless — all while trying to shield themselves from police batons attempting to restore order. Most were workers from Odisha, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, heading back to their native places in such large numbers that the station could not cope.

Later in the night, a contrasting picture emerged. Hundreds of passengers boarded a special AC train, chanting “Jai Shri Ram” and “Vande Mataram", and waving the tricolour in complete normalcy.

Vote for 'change' in WB

The passengers, originally from West Bengal, were returning home to cast their votes for “change” against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Many were BJP supporters handpicked by Surat Bengali associations, which also covered their travel costs as part of electioneering.

On Sunday, massive chaos broke out at Udhna Railway Station in Surat, where thousands of migrant workers stood in queues to catch trains. Most of them are employed in Surat’s famed diamond and textile industries, which have been severely hit for over a month due to the Iran war crisis. According to railway officials, the crowd had been swelling since Saturday and went berserk by Sunday afternoon. More than 23,000 people were estimated to have reached the station to catch trains.

The massive crowding led to chaos, with people jumping barricades and creating panic and disorder. The Railway Protection Force and Government Railway Police resorted to batons to control the crowd and restore order. According to railway officials, about 23,000 passengers had arrived for six trains scheduled to leave for Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

“The passengers were heading to their native places for various reasons — school vacations, social obligations, the continued difficulty of accessing cooking gas at affordable prices, and the overall slowdown. The government couldn’t manage the crowd, yet at the same time facilitated a special train that took BJP supporters to West Bengal,” said Sharad Zagade, general secretary of the Surat-based Gujarat Sangharsh Majdoor Union and a Congress leader.

Meanwhile, Ramashray Pandey, General Manager of Western Railway, told reporters, “A rumour had spread that there would be no train after 11.30 am and that services had stopped. But that is not true. There is no such shortage of trains at all.”

Hours later, from the same railway station, 1,300 passengers departed for West Bengal on a special train. These passengers, originally from various parts of West Bengal and working in Surat, are said to be staunch BJP supporters. They are part of the party’s plan to send 5,000 such migrants to vote for “change” in the state.

More trains are expected to take such BJP voters to West Bengal in a few days.