The workers — Nasiruddin Sheikh, 38, Laltu Sheikh, 28, Shafiqul Islam, 38, and Sabir Sheikh, 42, were released from detention on Oct 7
On Sept 4, Sirgitti police rounded up 23 workers, checked their identities and matched their names against a list.
Sabir said an SSP-rank woman officer and six to seven other police personnel questioned the workers about their families, in-laws and lineage, recording their responses on mobile phones. “It was intimidating, but we answered the questions truthfully,” he told TOI . But I was detained along with three others,” Sabir said.
The four were detained after police found their names missing. “My older brother, Mostakim Sheikh’s name was on the list, so he was let go.
The workers — Nasiruddin Sheikh, 38, Laltu Sheikh, 28, Shafiqul Islam, 38, and Sabir Sheikh, 42 — have appealed their exclusion from the electoral rolls before a Murshidabad tribunal.
After his release, Sabir said his family had been Indian citizens for three generations but he was interrogated “like a suspected terrorist”. Their release came two days after a Calcutta High Court bench of Justice Krishna Rao sought a report from the Bilaspur Foreigners Registration Officer (FRO), asking how an FRO in Chhattisgarh could determine their citizenship. Rao was informed of their release on Thursday. The cases are scheduled for hearing on Monday.