Dispur: A month after Altaf Hussain released his song, the Assam Police on Saturday arrested this Bengali-origin Muslim singer on charges of inciting hatred against the state’s ethnic communities, Scroll reported.
The 31-year-old in his song asked “Does Assam belong to your father that you want to chase them out?”
The question gathers importance in the wake of Bengali-origin Muslims in Assam called “Miyas” are being falsely accused of causing troubles alongside being branded as undocumented immigrants.
Hussain was trying to highlight the situation where nativist groups are campaigning to drive out Bengali-origin Muslims.
The lyrics to the song are similar to a Bangladeshi protest song“Desh ta tomar baaper naki” meaning 'Does the country belong to your father?”
Following a complaint against the singer in western Assam’s Dhubri district, a case was filed on Saturday charging him with ‘promoting enmity between religious groups and hurting religious sentiments’, according to the report.
More important, the complainant alleged that Hussain distorted the traditional Bihu song thus inciting hostility against Assam’s indigenous communities. Subsequently, the singer was arrested.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reportedly said some people were trying to popularize 'Miya Bihu', adding that people of Assam would not tolerate attempts to alter Bihu songs.
After some nativist outfits issued threats to Bengali-origin Muslims to leave Upper Assam, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader earlier on August 27 declared that he would not allow Miya Muslims to “take over the state”.
It all began after three Bengali-origin Muslims were accused of being involved in the gang-rape of a 14-year-old girl in the Dhing area of Assam’s Nagaon district on August 22, according to the report.