Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday urged all border states to remain vigilant about the entry of Rohingya Muslims through the Indo-Bangladesh border, framing it as a pressing security concern. Sarma claimed that 138 infiltrators had been detected in the past two months in Assam, adding that nearly all of them were Rohingya Muslims.
“In the last two months, we have identified 138 infiltrators and pushed them back. Contrary to expectations that Hindu Bengalis would seek refuge due to Bangladesh’s internal instabilities, we are only witnessing the arrival of Rohingya Muslims,” Sarma told reporters.
The Chief Minister’s statement emphasised a narrative often used to target Muslim refugees, underscoring concerns about selective profiling. His remarks focused on how earlier assumptions of Hindu migration from Bangladesh were inaccurate, adding, “Data shows that primarily Rohingya Muslims are crossing over, not Hindu Bengalis.”
He called for tighter coordination between the state governments and the Border Security Force. “Every state must be vigilant. Assam and Tripura are working closely with the BSF, and if Bengal follows suit, we will have a well-orchestrated, systematic effort to prevent infiltration,” he said.
Sarma’s frequent invocation of Rohingya migration plays into a broader political narrative that seeks to frame Muslims as a demographic threat. This narrative, combined with existing policies targeting Muslims in Assam, such as the controversial NRC and anti-encroachment drives, adds to the anxieties of marginalised Muslim communities in the region.
