Malda (West Bengal): Sitting outside his house in Nayabasti area of Malda district in West Bengal, Ataul Sheikh recounted the ordeal he and several others like him had gone through as migrant labourers in Kashmir Valley after the murder of five daily wagers from the same district in south Kashmir's Kulgam area on the fateful night of October 29.
"I and my son had to hide in another person's house a day after the incident happened in Kulgam until we made our way back home. The site of the killings was barely six kilometres away from our rented accommodation. Even the security forces were asking us to leave. Life comes first, money later," said Sheikh.
The visibly shaken labourer added, "Words were doing rounds that those who were renting out rooms to migrant labourers, will be penalised with five years of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 21 lakh if any of their tenants died. Since then, even the landlords wanted us to leave. We cannot go back to Kashmir.”
A migrant worker in Kashmir earns anywhere between Rs. 700 and 800 per day, an amount that is nowhere close to what they earn back home. It is this financial opportunity that drives hundreds of casual labourers from remote rural areas of West Bengal to the Valley, which make their home for around ten months every year.
"We are losing out on a lot of money. We are unable to understand the reason behind the murders. We came back out of fear, otherwise, we would have gotten work for another three to four months," said Sheikh.
Sheikh is just one among several other workers who headed back home after the October 29 killings.
As many as 131 labourers are returning from Jammu and Kashmir to West Bengal after the West Bengal government agreed to facilitate their return following the violence. Most of the labourers are from Malda and Murshidabad districts.
The fear is so deep-rooted now that some of these workers didn't even wait for the government to take an initiative.
Around 400 migrant workers from the Nayabasti area of Nowda-Jadupur gram panchayat in Kaliachak -1 block of Malda district have started returning from Kashmir.
Saherul Sheikh, Asidur Sheikh and others from Malda have similar stories to share.
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Asidur was attacked by robbers recently and he is carrying that trauma with him along with the recent incidents.
“First is life. Money comes later. This time we will try our luck in Kerala. No more of Kashmir,” he said.
When asked if they have tried working in their state, Asidur said, “What are the options here? And even if we get something here, who would pay the amount we get outside? Moreover, to get a job in West Bengal, we need to shell out a portion from our earnings to the middlemen. At least that is not the case, outside."
