JOIN USWest Bengal natives with Al-Qaeda links used migrant workers' cover in Kerala
The three men arrested by the NIA from Kerala for having Al-Qaeda links had been working as migrant workers with one of them living with his wife and two children in the state.
The family members and roommates of the three, all hailing from Murshidabad, claimed that they had no suspicion about their activities. Sources in the state police intelligence wing also said that so far, they hadn't come across any sort of suspicions about the three, even as there were reports of many people who had illegally migrated to India through Murshidabad being present in the locality.
The Kalamassery and Perumbavoor areas of Ernakulam, around 15 to 25 kilometres from Kochi city from where the three were held, are considered as migrant workers' hubs in Kerala.
Over the last few years, around 100 Malayalis have joined the ISIS from Kerala but no specific cases of Al-Qaeda operatives in Kerala have been reported so far.
Among the three held during the wee hours of Saturday, Mosaraf Hossein was the one staying with wife and two children at Vazhakulam near Perumbavoor. He was working at a textile shop in Perumbavoor over the last few months. Hossein's wife supposedly told the NIA that she was unaware of any sort of terrorist links of her husband. He reached Kerala as a migrant worker about ten years ago and was involved in various jobs. His family was said to be involved in agriculture in West Bengal. V C Chandran, a local ward member, also said that nobody had raised any suspicion about Hossein.
Murshid Hasan, who was held in Pathalam near Kalamassery, was staying with five other West Bengal natives in a rented house over the last three months. His roommates said that he did not go to work on many days and would remain in the room. The NIA had examined his roommates and let them off.
Iyakub Biswas, who was also held from Perumbavoor, earlier worked at a chappathi shop at Adimali in Idukki district. He landed in Perumbavoor only a few months ago.
The arrest of three men has also brought to focus the safety issues pertaining to the uncontrolled flow of migrants, including illegal migrants from Bangladesh.
Many West Bengal natives have also been held in criminal cases, including fake currency circulation and ganja trade.
The executive director of the Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development Benoy Petre, who has been conducting studies among the migrant workers in Kerala, said that 99.9% of the migrant workers come down for work only.
Of the migrant workers from West Bengal in Kerala, 75% were from Murshidabad. At least 30% of the migrant workers in Ernakulam district were from Murshidabad, especially along the border areas of Domkal and Jalangi. Hence, the chances of West Bengal natives involved in unlawful activities preferring Kerala as a hideout could not be ruled out, he said.
Even as studies suggested that the number of the migrant population in Kerala was over 20 lakh, the number of migrant workers who had enrolled with the Kerala government during the Covid-19 lockdown was only around four lakh. This also points to suspicions that many migrant workers could be illegal.