On 29th January (Thursday), Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma refused to retract his comments on “Miya Muslims” in response to the criticism by the opposition and Islamo-leftist cabal. He explained that the term is utilised for illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators and invoked the Supreme Court to highlight the threat posed by their unlawful entry into the state. “This is not my language, not my imagination and not political exaggeration,” he asserted.
Sarma cited the apex court, which stated, “The silent and invidious demographic invasion of Assam may result in the loss of the geostrategically vital districts of its lower area. The influx of illegal migrants is turning these districts into a Muslim majority region. It will then only be a matter of time when a demand for their merger with Bangladesh may be made. Loss of lower Assam will sever the entire land mass of the North East from the rest of India and the rich natural resources of that region will be lost to the nation.”
Those who are attacking me for my remarks on “Miyan”—a word used in Assam in the context of Bangladeshi Muslim illegal migration—should pause and read what the Supreme Court of India itself has said about Assam. This is not my language, not my imagination, and not political…
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) January 29, 2026
The chief minister pointed out that shedding light on the glaring reality is “neither hatred nor communalism, nor is it an attack on any community” because “the highest constitutional court of the country uses words like demographic invasion and warns of the possible loss of territory and national unity.” He added that it is an acknowledgement of a serious and persistent issue that Assam has endured for many years.
“Our effort is not against any religion or any Indian citizen. Our effort is to protect Assam’s identity, security and future, exactly as the Supreme Court cautioned the nation to do. Ignoring that warning would be the real injustice to Assam and India,” he then emphasised.
Sarma also noted that the word “Miya” is assigned by individuals who have come from Bangladesh to themselves. “If I refer to them as Miya, they may call me Assamiya. What is the issue,” he asked.
#WATCH | Golaghat: On Opposition criticising his 'Miya Muslims' statement, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma says, "…Those who have come from Bangladesh call themselves 'Miya'. I did not give them that name; it is they who call themselves that…" pic.twitter.com/rI580Hc0QS
— ANI (@ANI) January 29, 2026
Sarma’s comments against illegal Bangladeshi Muslims upset the opposition
A day ago, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader clarified that the conflict in the state is not between Hindus and Muslims but rather between Assamese and Bangladeshis. He stressed, “Assam is a polarised society. For the next 30 years, we have to practice a politics of polarisation, if you want to live. If you want to surrender, then surrender, but as an Assamese, I don’t want to surrender.”
“I will fight, I will polarise. However, polarisation is not between Hindus and Muslims but between Assamese and Bangladeshis. That is the difference. So we don’t fight with Assamese Muslims, we only fight with Bangladeshi Muslims,” he further mentioned.
According to him, BJP workers have been asked to file “Form 7” in bulk against them. “It is a known fact that there are Bangladeshi Miyas in Assam. Has anybody got notice in Thowra or Dimou? No one received any notice. If Bangladeshi Miyas do not get notice in the SIR then what it will mean is that there are no foreigners in Assam,” he contended.
Similarly, Sarma earlier conveyed that no intruders will be permitted to vote in the forthcoming assembly elections in the state. On 27th January (Tuesday), he declared that “four to five lakh Miya voters” will be eliminated when the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral records occurs in the poll-bound state. “Vote chori means we are trying to steal some Miya votes. They should ideally not be allowed to vote in Assam, but in Bangladesh,” he expressed.
A Special Revision is going to take place in the state on the direction of the Election Commission. It is a procedure akin to the regular updates to the electoral records while SIR campaign is happening in 12 states and union territories nationwide.
“This (SR) is preliminary. When the SIR comes to Assam, four to five lakh Miya votes will have to be deleted in Assam,” the chief minister stated. “We are ensuring that they cannot vote in Assam,” he assured and added, “Let Congress abuse me as much as they want. My job is to make the Miya people suffer.”
Sarma stated that these intruders would be troubled and face challenges from his government within the ambit of the law. However, the opposition and its ecosystem, which have exclusively served the Muslim votebank in the name of secularism while compromising national interest and security, denounced him for targeting the illegal immigrants.
Opposition approaches court, threatens civil war
Indian National Congress member Debabrata Saikia, who is the leader of the opposition in the assembl,y has written to the Chief Justice of India requesting suo motu cognisance of the alleged abuse of Form 7 “as instruments of intimidation, harassment and targeted disenfranchisement of a particular community.”
“The situation has transcended the realm of administrative irregularity and has assumed the character of a constitutional crisis, where the right to vote under Article 326 (Basis of the Universal Adult Suffrage) of the Constitution of India is being systematically undermined through executive interference, communal targeting, and misuse of statutory procedures,” it read.
He claimed, “This directly undermines the independence of the Election Commission of India, politicises the electoral process, and violates the constitutional guarantees of equality, fraternity, secularism and non-discrimination.” Saikia insisted that Sarma’s remarks “constitute an unprecedented admission of intent to interfere with the electorate on communal lines.”
Veteran Congressman Pawan Khera accused Sarma of attempting to deceive the public with his statements and demanded, “Talk about the thousands of crores you have gobbled up from people of Assam to fill your deep pockets.”
Himanta Biswa Sarma is once again trying to fool the people of Assam.
— Pawan Khera 🇮🇳 (@Pawankhera) January 28, 2026
Paying ₹4 instead of ₹5 to “Miyaan” will not make the people of Assam rich. But the sale of over 1.5 lakh bighas of Sixth Schedule–protected land and Assamese identity to corporate interests by that… pic.twitter.com/6cOnNuDUKj
Controversial Congress leader Udit Raj went so far as to threaten another partition and civil unrest. “The fallout will be highly dangerous and they don’t even care. BJP did not participate in the freedom struggle then why its leaders would now be concerned about unity in the country as their primary goal appears to be maintaining power even at any cost,” he charged.
“If this situation persists, there will be severe repercussions, including the potential partition of the country and civil unrest. The RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) and BJP will bear responsibility for this as they are willing to do anything to secure electoral victories,” he warned.
Delhi: Congress leader Udit Raj, on Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's statement regarding the voter list, says, "Congress neither works for Bengali Muslims nor for Bengali Hindus. Congress views everyone as citizens. It is good that what was once done covertly, Himanta… pic.twitter.com/PK8WrUicw6
— IANS (@ians_india) January 29, 2026
Udit Raj also took the opportunity to promote the “secular” image of his party and added, “Congress neither works for Bengali Muslims nor for Bengali Hindus. Congress views everyone as a citizen. It is good that what was once done covertly, Himanta Biswa Sarma has now openly stated.”
Congress MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed labelled the chief minister’s comments as discriminatory and humiliating for an entire community. He called them extremely disrespectful, undemocratic, unconstitutional, dangerous and detrimental to Assam’s “social ethos.” He asserted that the government was dividing the society for political objectives but his party would continue to defend secular values and social harmony in the state as well as vehemently oppose any attempt to target a community.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP Amaran even dragged the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and other backward classes in his nonsensical argument, arguing that the Sarma government was employing administrative exercises to strip them of their votes.
“This is what the chief minister always does. In the name of SIR, votes are being taken away from Dalits, minorities, SC and STs. Even when people are not being divided on the basis of Hindu or Muslim, votes are being manipulated in the name of SIR. All of these people are citizens of this country, whether Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Christian or Buddhist. Creating hatred against them, I believe, is a betrayal of the country, its Constitution and its unity,” he expressed.
Islamists and Leftists join hands to demand action against Sarma
The jihadis and their leftist allies banded together to demand action against Sarma just as the opposition went after him. “Assam CM brazenly prompting economic apartheid,” Lawyer Aman Wadud posted on social media.
"Whoever can, should make Miyan suffer. If the rickshaw fare is ₹5, pay ₹4"
— Aman Wadud (@AmanWadud) January 27, 2026
Assam CM brazenly prompting economic apartheid ! pic.twitter.com/Ms9xYZ3PV2
A furious Arfa Khanum Sherwani of The Wire lashed out, “Is the Supreme Court in this country actually functioning,” and then questioned, “Why does it not take suo motu notice and ensure that this Chief Minister is immediately held accountable under the law of the land?”
She stated that he is publicly defending the persecution and discrimination against Muslims while holding a constitutional office as well as even encouraging others to follow suit. Arfa then proceeded to charge that the “disgraceful” Sarma “is turning Assam into Hitler’s Germany.”
Is the Supreme Court in this country actually functioning ?
— Arfa Khanum Sherwani (@khanumarfa) January 28, 2026
Why does it not take suo motu notice and ensure that this Chief Minister is immediately held accountable under the law of the land?
Sitting in a constitutional office, he is openly justifying why Muslims should be… https://t.co/cRilrIs4QI
“Only in India, people can call for economic apartheid of Muslims and get away,” wrote another leftist social media account.
Whoever can, should make Miyan suffer. If the rickshaw fare is Rs. 5, pay Rs.4 says Himanta Biswa
— Nehr_who? (@Nher_who) January 28, 2026
Only in India, people can call for economic apartheid of Muslims and get away.
pic.twitter.com/VFpZaawsgc
“Spewing hatred on communal lines is a serious offence,” declared the infamous anti-Hindu lawyer, Prashant Bhushan and added, “Himanta Biswa Sarma would be in jail if the police were implementing the rule of law,” echoing similar viwes.
Spewing hatred on communal lines is a serious offence. Himanta Biswa Sarma would be in jail if the police were implementing the rule of law https://t.co/1G9pY5lpCT
— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) January 28, 2026
Ashish Goel alleged, “Looks like Assam Chief Minister is above Indian Constitution. Wake up every morning and give hate speech against Muslims with complete impunity.” He then insulted the judiciary, suggesting that the judges of the Gauhati High Court must be living under a rock if they cannot take cognisance of the latter’s widely publicised provocative remarks.
Looks like Assam Chief Minister is above Indian Constitution. Wake up every morning and give hate speech against Muslims with complete impunity! Judges of Gauhati High Court must be living under a rock that they can't take cognizance of his widely reported inflammatory remarks
— Ashish Goel (@ashish_nujs) January 28, 2026
The reality underlying Sarma’s statements
While the opposition, its ecosystem and the Islamo-leftists are preoccupied with portraying Sarma as the villain, the reality is that Assam is confronting a significant challenge of demographic change due to illegal immigration from Bangladesh. He outlined it by quoting the Supreme Court. Moreover, in a striking instance of direct admission, even Muslim leaders from Assam have boasted how the region will soon resemble Bangladesh due to the massive flow of intruders further validating the concerns that have been raised repeatedly.
“We will make Sivasagar like Dhubri, will turn Dhubri into Sivasagar, will make Barak (south Assam districts) like Sivasagar and will turn Tinsukia into Dhubri. We are going ahead to make such an Assam under Gaurav Gogoi,” Rejaul Karim Sarkar vowed when he became a memeber of the grand old party. He is the former president of the All Assam Minorities Students Union. Assam Pradesh Congress Committee President Gaurav Gogoi was also present when he made the ominous comment.
Unsurprisingly, these Bangladeshi infiltrators not only impose a strain on state resources but also undermine the rights of legitimate citizens, both Hindus and Muslims. However, neither the opposition nor this cabal can see beyond their lens of communalism and religion, which leads them to have no problems regarding this flagrant abuse of the rights of Indian citizens.
The infiltrators have illegally occupied lakhs of acres of land in the state over the past several decades. The government’s aggressive eviction drives have been successful but not without enduring protests, assaults and stone pelting directed at the administration and the authorities. The locals in Assam’s Darrang have even blamed Congress for establishing Bangladeshis for votes, after which they took over thousands of acres of government property over several decades, including a 5000-year-old Shiva temple and a cave.
The encroachment has caused significant harm to the native communities, dismantled their fundamental culture and destroyed the economic system of the state. Muslims have also submitted petitions in the high court regarding the unauthorised activities as these affect all citizens of the state.
Therefore, Sarma called out these elements as the chief minister of a state grappling with such grave circumstances. However, the opposition, their propagandists and this entire faction latched onto his remarks, attributing a communal tone to them, despite the fact that he had only differentiated between Bangladeshis and Assamese rather than Hindus and Muslims. However, the truth will never deter them from their agenda, even if it comes at the expense of the nation or its people.
Consequently, they have also forgotten that the constitution of the country, the judiciary, and other democratic institutions exist for the citizens and not for intruders. No nation in the world can afford to open its borders to outsiders and jeopardise its stability. However, their anti-BJP rhetoric and blind hatred prevent them from grasping this simple truth.
