Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said that only Bengali-speaking Muslims, referred to as Miyas, are being evicted in the state and accused opposition parties of focusing on appeasement politics.
Speaking to reporters, Sarma said that eviction drives in Assam target only Miyas and not Assamese people. He dismissed reports suggesting that anti-encroachment drives would be carried out in the hills surrounding Guwahati, claiming such information was being spread by the media.
“Only Miyas are evicted in Assam. How can Assamese people be evicted?” Sarma said, adding that residents of Guwahati hills were being unnecessarily alarmed by rumours. He claimed that no eviction would take place in the hills till the Assembly elections and that people would eventually realise that the fear was unfounded.
The term Miya is originally used as a pejorative for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam, often portraying them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. In recent years, members of the community have reclaimed the term as an assertion of identity.
Elections to the 126-member Assam Assembly are due in the first half of the year, with the BJP-led alliance seeking a third consecutive term. Sarma stated that the BJP has been in power for ten years and questioned where any eviction had taken place in the Guwahati hills during this period. He said the government was instead working to provide land rights to hill residents without charging any premium.
However, Sarma added that eviction notices would be served to any Miya residing in the hills but not to Assamese people.
Accusing the Congress of appeasing Bengali-speaking Muslims, Sarma claimed that a majority of those seeking Congress tickets were from the community. He said the party had received around 750 applications, of which about 600 were from Miyas, while only 120 to 130 applicants were Hindus. He described the situation as the Congress headquarters being overwhelmed by Miyas.
The Chief Minister alleged that the Congress had become a threat to Assam’s religion, culture and community, and claimed that opposition parties would unite in the Assembly elections solely for the sake of the Miyas.
Sarma also said that details regarding alleged Pakistan links of Assam Congress president and Lok Sabha MP Gaurav Gogoi would be made public soon. He stated that he intended to disclose the information by January 31, though it might be delayed by a day or two due to the Union Budget.
The BJP and Sarma have accused Gogoi over his wife’s alleged links with Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI. The Assam government had earlier constituted a Special Investigation Team to probe allegations of interference by Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, who is alleged to have links with Gogoi’s British wife Elizabeth Colburn. The SIT submitted its report to the Chief Minister on September 10.
