Mahua Moitra alleges discrimination against Muslim officials in Bengal:Writes to UN human rights expert; seeks govt response on HM’s visits

TMC MP Mahua Moitra has complained to the UN about Amit Shah’s government programmes in West Bengal. She has accused the authorities of excluding Muslim IAS and IPS officers on the basis of their religion. Moitra has sent a letter to Professor Nicolas Levrat, the UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues. She said that three senior officers were removed from programmes or prevented from attending during Shah’s visits to the state in July and August. According to Moitra, officers from other religions were allowed to attend the programmes. However, PTI could not independently verify these allegations. Moitra wrote the letter to Professor Nicolas Levrat, the Special Rapporteur on minority issues at the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). She alleged that senior Muslim IAS and IPS officers were excluded from programmes on three occasions. These incidents took place during Amit Shah’s visits to West Bengal in July and August. Moitra said that counterparts of these officers belonging to other religions were allowed to be present at the programmes. She wrote in the letter, “One thing is common to all three officers, and what sets them apart from colleagues who were allowed to remain at the programme is their religion.” Officers named Moitra mentioned Siliguri Police Commissioner Waquar Raza, Javed Shamim, chief of the Special Task Force of the West Bengal Police, and senior IAS officer Khalil Ahmed. She described these incidents as a pattern of “deliberate exclusion”. Moitra said such treatment could affect the trust and sense of security of minority communities. Appeal for a response from the Government of India The TMC leader appealed to the special envoy to seek information from the Government of India about the alleged reasons for excluding the officers and the authority responsible for it. She also demanded that CCTV footage, tour diaries and other records related to Amit Shah’s visits be preserved. Moitra cited provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in her complaint. Moitra had tweeted about the matter a few days earlier. A police complaint was subsequently filed against her, and she was called to the Diamond Harbour police station. PTI could not independently verify the allegations.