Assam CM warns Miya Muslims, stirs controversy

Guwahati: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said that he will keep on taking sides and won't let 'Miya' Muslims take over the state.

Speaking on adjournment motions brought by the opposition parties to discuss the law and order situation in the state in the backdrop of the rape of a 14-year-old girl in Nagaon, Mr Sarma also warned that Miyan Muslims should avoid going to Upper Assam without the consent of “locals”. “If they do so it would be difficult for him to provide security to them,” he warned

The term 'Miya' refers to Muslims of Bengali origin who are often alleged to be ‘illegal immigrants.’

Mr Sarma’s remark has come close on the heels of horrific rape of a minor girl in Dhing by three youths from the Muslim community.

As many as 30 organisations in Upper Assam, the districts in eastern Assam, have come together to issue the deadline to the Miya Muslims to leave the region within 7 days. Tai Ahom Yuva Parishad said, “The whole incident has been committed by Miya Muslims. Miya Muslims have now become a cancerous disease in Assam. There are many Mia Muslims in Lower Assam. They are involved in crimes like rape, robbery, drug trafficking. People are upset.”

The opposition MLA Akhil Gogoi claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party is trying to recreate the 2002 Gujarat episodes in Assam. Mr Gogoi claimed on Sunday amid reports that some organisations have allegedly been threatening Miya Muslims from Upper Assam to leave the administrative division. “To win elections, they [BJP] desire to create a situation of instability and conflict in Assam,” said Mr Gogoi, who registered strong protest to the chief minister’s remark in the state assembly on Tuesday.

The opposition parties in Assam held demonstrations in various parts of Guwahati, including the assembly complex, alleging the failure of the government to protect women and prevent crime against them.

Congress MLAs led by Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia marched from inside the assembly building to the statue of Mahatma Gandhi within the compound, holding placards and shouting slogans demanding the safety of women and condemning the targeting of a particular community for all crimes against women.

"The Dhing incident is not the only one. After that also, many such cases have taken place in different parts of the state," Saikia told reporters.

"The CM, who also holds the Home portfolio, is not at all serious and concerned about the situation. We discussed in the assembly about crimes against women with NCRB data and asked the government to take action," he said.

The opposition All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) also wrote to Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya seeking action against unknown organisations and fundamentalist groups issuing threats to the section of the Muslim community, demanding that they leave Upper Assam.

It is significant that the Assam chief minister has been issuing statements against Miya Muslims earlier, too. Last year, he said that the BJP does not need the votes of ‘Miya’ people of ‘char’ (riverine sandbar) areas for the next 10 years.