Matuas pushed into ‘confusing situation’, deliberately excluded from voter list by SIR, says Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday (March 5, 2026) said Matua brothers and sisters have been “pushed into an unstable and confusing situation” due to a conspiracy hatched by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre.

The Chief Minister made the remarks in a social media post on the death anniversary of Matua matriarch Binapani Devi, popularly known as ‘Baroma’. The Trinamool Congress chairperson alleged that political games are being played in the name of giving citizenship to them and questions are being raised about their identity.

“They are being deliberately excluded from the voter list by SIR (special intensive revision). Those who are citizens of this country through generations, whose votes [on which] the government is elected, are being made to face uncertainty today in the name of giving them new ‘citizenship’,” Ms. Banerjee said.

The remarks by the Chief Minister come ahead of Assembly polls in the State. Matuas, a community of Hindu refugees from Bangladesh who have been migrating to West Bengal, comprise a prominent voter group in the State. The community has traditionally voted for the BJP over the past few elections.

Ms. Banerjee said her government would continue to oppose any move that undermines the rights of the Matua community. “We will not accept this injustice. Our fight will continue against the attempts being made to take away the rights of the people of Bengal, including my Matua brothers and sisters. We will not let any harm come to the people of Bengal. This is my pledge on this special day,” the Chief Minister said.

Her social media post came a day before she is planning to sit on a dharna against the SIR exercise.

In the social media post, Ms. Banerjee said her government had taken several initiatives for the welfare of the community, including setting up the Matua Development Board and establishing the Harichand-Guruchand University at Thakurnagar in North 24 Parganas district.

During the SIR implementation in the State, the representatives of the community had expressed apprehension that their names were being struck off from the electoral rolls. Thousands of people belonging to the Matua community, comprising Hindu Namasudras with roots in Bangladesh, have applied for or are being encouraged by the BJP to apply for citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

The Union Home Ministry on March 2, 2026 notified two more empowered committees to fast-track citizenship applications under the CAA.