Assam CM urges people for ‘non-cooperation’ against Bengali-speaking Muslims
text_fields
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday continued his criticism of Bengali-origin Muslims, invoking Mahatma Gandhi to justify what he described as a policy of “non-cooperation” and “civil disobedience” intended to create circumstances that would compel them to leave Assam.
Speaking on the sidelines of a programme in Sivasagar district, Sarma said that while the state was deporting around 20 to 30 people every day, it was not feasible to detain large numbers and forcibly send them to Bangladesh. Instead, he argued that the government should pursue measures that would make it impossible for such individuals to continue living in the state, effectively prompting them to leave on their own.
Referring to eviction drives, the Chief Minister said land had been cleared across approximately 1.5 lakh bighas and claimed that those rendered landless would eventually be forced to move out. He added that daily “pushbacks” of around 20 to 25 people were ongoing and asserted that no legal challenges were being mounted against these actions, Maktoob Media reported.
Sarma presented this approach as being inspired by Gandhian methods, describing it as a form of civil disobedience and non-cooperation, and appealed to the Assamese population to adopt similar practices. He also urged people to differentiate between “Miyas”—a term widely seen as a derogatory reference to Bengali Muslims in Assam—and Muslims in general.
The remarks came against the backdrop of heightened political activity ahead of the Assembly elections. On the same day, the Assam Congress launched a campaign titled “Who is HBS?”, accusing the Chief Minister and his family members of large-scale land grabbing. The campaign was announced at a press conference addressed by Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and AICC general secretary in charge of Assam Jitendra Singh.
Gogoi claimed that the party’s internal inquiry had found that nearly 12,000 bighas of land had been illegally acquired in the names of Sarma’s family members across different parts of the state. The Congress also unveiled a website inviting public submissions related to the allegations.
Within hours of the Congress’s claims, Sarma said he would initiate both civil and criminal defamation proceedings against Gogoi, Jitendra Singh, Bhupesh Baghel and Congress leader Debabrata Saikia.
The Chief Minister has drawn sustained criticism in recent weeks over remarks described by opponents as inflammatory and divisive. At a recent event in Digboi, he reportedly stated that the objective of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls was to cause hardship to the “Miya” community and urged people to harass them, including by underpaying rickshaw fares.