Ahead of polls, Assam CM says ‘Will break backbone of Miyas if BJP comes to power’
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Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma has drawn sharp criticism after stating that his government would take strong action against “Miyas” if the Bharatiya Janata Party returns to power in the upcoming Assembly elections.
Addressing a rally in Dhakuakhana in Lakhimpur district, Sarma said his government had prioritised the interests of what he described as the state’s “indigenous people”, while targeting those he alleged were illegal migrants.
“And those who came from Bangladesh and encroached on Assam’s land and homes, we broke their hands and legs politically,” he said, according to PTI.
He further added, “This time, we will break the very backbone of the Bangladeshi Miyas, so that they cannot dare the Assamese people.”
The term “Miya” in Assam is often used in a derogatory sense to refer to Bengali-origin Muslims, many of whom are frequently accused of being undocumented migrants from Bangladesh. While the word historically had a respectful connotation, sections of the community have in recent years attempted to reclaim it as a self-identifier, Maktoob Media reported.
Sarma’s remarks are seen as part of a series of controversial statements he has made in the past targeting the community. Earlier, he had said that it was his responsibility to make “Miyas” suffer and had also spoken about efforts to remove certain names from electoral rolls.
On February 26, the Gauhati High Court sought his response to petitions seeking action against him over alleged hate speech directed at Muslims. Around the same time, the Supreme Court of India declined to entertain pleas seeking registration of an FIR against him on similar grounds.
During the rally, Sarma also said that his government had cleared about 1.5 lakh bighas of what he described as encroached land over the past five years, alleging that such land had been occupied by “Miyas”.
Since the BJP came to power in Assam in 2016, multiple eviction and demolition drives have been carried out, many of which have impacted Bengali-speaking Muslim communities.
The remarks come in the midst of the election campaign, with Assembly polls in Assam scheduled for April 9 and results to be declared on May 4.