GUWAHATI: ”Despite repeated promises from the BJP party, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah, both the Central and State BJP governments have failed to deport Bangladeshis from Assam,” alleged Jagdish Bhuyan, General Secretary of the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) (BJP failure to deport foreigners in Assam).
During a press conference held in Guwahati on Saturday, Bhuyan launched a sharp critique of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He noted, “I expected Union Home Minister Amit Shah to say something new during his two-day visit to Assam. However, he merely repeated the same points he made before the elections of 2014, 2016, 2019, 2021, and 2024.”
Bhuyan remarked that apart from political rhetoric, Shah highlighted two main issues related to the lives of people in Assam: floods/erosion and the foreigner problem. “In 2021, he spoke about solving the flood problem permanently by digging large ponds to divert Brahmaputra river water. He said it again this time. Knowing this is unrealistic and impossible, why did he say it? The government should make public any scientific plan they have from scientists regarding this,” Bhuyan added.
Failure to Secure Borders and Deport Foreigners
Referring to Amit Shah’s call for a third term to solve the foreigner issue, Bhuyan reminded the public that the Home Minister had made a similar plea in 2021 for a second term. Before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections at Dharamtul in Morigaon district, Shah had claimed that if the people supported the BJP, the Indo-Bangladesh border would be sealed so tightly that even a bird could not cross.
”Our question is, don’t the BJP leaders feel ashamed to repeatedly visit Assam since 2014 and give the same unfulfilled promises? The BJP promised to deport Bangladeshis in every election—2014, 2016, 2019, 2021, and 2024,” Bhuyan stated.
The AJP General Secretary cited legislative data to support his claims:
August 22, 2024 (Assembly Data): CM Himanta Biswa Sarma reported that during the BJP tenure, the number of Bangladeshis deported was: 0 in 2017, 13 in 2018, 6 in 2019, 1 in 2020, 3 in 2021, 2 in 2022, and 1 in 2023.
November 26, 2025 (Assembly Data): Minister for Assam Accord Implementation, Atul Bora, stated that while 32,207 illegal foreigners were identified during the 4 years and 10 months of the Himanta Biswa Sarma government (2021: 6304, 2022: 8790, 2023: 6703, 2024: 6120, and 4290 up to October 2025), only 1,416 have actually been deported.
January 26, 2026: Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya mentioned in his Republic Day speech that out of 1.7 lakh declared illegal citizens, only 467 could be expelled so far.
Bhuyan argued that these figures prove the BJP’s failure and alleged that the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) actually opens the door for illegal Bangladeshis to gain Indian citizenship.
Allegations of Hate Speech Against the Chief Minister
Bhuyan criticized Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for targeting a specific community (referred to as ‘Miya’ by the CM) as elections approach. He cited the CM’s January 27 remarks, where Sarma allegedly said his job was to “trouble the Miya” and claimed that 5 lakh Miya names would be cut from the voter list under “SIR.” Bhuyan also noted the CM’s comment that “if a Miya rickshaw puller asks for five rupees, only four should be paid.”
“The Chief Minister’s statements are illegal, anti-constitutional, provocative, and inhumane,” Bhuyan said. “By making such remarks, he has violated the oath he took under the Constitution and has lost the eligibility to hold the office of Chief Minister.”
He further questioned Director General of Police (DGP) GP Singh on whether a suo moto case has been registered against the CM following Supreme Court directives (October 21, 2022, and April 28, 2023) regarding hate speech.
Questions from AJP to the Chief Minister
Bhuyan posed several direct questions to the Chief Minister:
Has the NRC update been completed? Has the government filed the required affidavit in court?
Have the 19 lakh people excluded from the NRC been removed from the voter list?
Has a repatriation treaty for illegal citizens been signed with the friendly Bangladesh government?
Has the Assam Accord been implemented letter and spirit?
Have constitutional safeguards been provided for the Assamese people as per the Justice (Retd) Biplab Sarma Committee recommendations?
Has the ST status for 6 ethnic groups been granted?
Bhuyan concluded by alleging that while the government calls evictees “illegal encroachers,” many are actually being provided alternative land, PMAY houses, and inclusion in voter lists elsewhere, while the cleared lands are handed to capitalists like Adani and Ambani. “As of today,” Bhuyan remarked, “Himanta Biswa Sarma is the most beneficial person for illegal Bangladeshis in Assam.”
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