Jisha murder: Migrants flee Perumbavoor after Assam man's arrest

 The arrest of Assamese labourer in connection with sensational Jisha murder case has created a panic among the labour migrants from other states over possible hate attacks on them. The labourers, most of them from West Bengal and the North East, are deserting Perumbavoor town, which has the highest concentration of inter-state migrants in Kerala. 

Also read: Jisha murder suspect Amiyur Ul Islam to be kept in isolated ward 

Earlier, more than 20 persons used to live in the two-storied building where Amiyur Ul Islam, the key suspect in the Jisha murder case lived. With his arrest, all labourers, except a few from Uttar Pradesh, left the building. 

"We leave for work early morning and return only at night and don't know who all are visiting the place. We don't know Islam," Yaseen, a native from Utter Pradesh said.  

Even though they hardly know each other and belong to different states, the workers from other states are commonly considered as a homogenous group and are called 'Bengalis' in common parlance. 

 
Perumbavoor, a small town in Ernakulam district, is home to the largest number of migrant workers in Kerala. Life of migrants in the area has become miserable after police revealed that investigation in Jisha murder case would focus on labourers from other states. 
 

Though the investigation team is yet to give its official version on the suspect and the incidents that led to the murder, except the details in the brief remand report, there are apprehensions among the labour community from other states that they might face public ire. The social media is flooding with hate messages against migrant workers, posing a possible threat to their safety.  

• jisha murderer
• Assamese held in Jisha case
• #justiceforjisha