BJP MLA receives threat calls from UK, Philippines for alleging influx of Rohingyas in Barak valley

Guwahati: An MLA of the ruling BJP in Assam on Wednesday said he received two phone calls from abroad, wherein unidentified callers threatened him with death for commenting on the Rohingyas and Bengali-speaking Muslims, after which he lodged an FIR. “I received two calls one from the United Kingdom, and the other from Philippines on Tuesday. The callers threatened me of dire consequences if I did not stop commenting on the influx of Rohingyas and on the Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam,” Hojai MLA Shiladitya Dev said. [caption id=“attachment_4161649” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Rohingya Muslims fleeing Myanmar. Reuters[/caption] He said following the threat calls, he got registered the case with Hojai police. Dev had earlier alleged that the Rohingyas from Myanmar have been entering the Barak Valley in Assam through Tripura and that Tripura’s Left Front government was pushing them into Assam for political mileage. The BJP leader had also questioned the demand of Bengali-speaking Muslims of Assam to be declared as original inhabitants of that state. He also courted controversy by saying that the ‘char’ (riverine sandbars) areas in Assam, inhabited by Bengali-speaking Muslims, have become a breeding ground for terrorism and that the government should stop funding for development of these areas.