{"id":57899,"date":"2025-08-03T12:25:27","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T06:55:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=57899"},"modified":"2025-08-05T16:36:16","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T11:06:16","slug":"assams-eviction-drives-the-ripple-effect-in-northeast-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/assams-eviction-drives-the-ripple-effect-in-northeast-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Assam\u2019s Eviction Drives &#8211; The Ripple Effect in Northeast India"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Assam\u2019s Eviction Drives Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Assam government\u2019s intensified eviction drive<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> targeting alleged encroachments on forest and government lands, particularly by Bengali-speaking Muslims, has sparked <\/span><b>political controversy and raised regional tensions<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, affecting inter-State relations in Northeast India.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Genesis and Timeline of Eviction Drives<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>State government\u2019s political commitment:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The current government came to power in Assam in 2016, with the slogan to protect jaati (community), maati (land), and bheti (hearth).<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The first eviction drive began in September<\/span><b> 2016, following a Gauhati High Court order<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to reclaim forestlands near Kaziranga National Park.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Subsequent developments:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A major incident in 2021 at Gorukhuti in Darrang district resulted in two deaths, raising <\/span><b>concerns over human rights<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The drive resumed in June 2025, coinciding with corruption charges against the current government, including <\/span><b>alleged irregularities in a Gir cow distribution scheme at Gorukhuti.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Socio-Political Roots of the Eviction Policy<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Long-standing narrative:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Evictions are part of a <\/span><b>broader anti-infiltration narrative<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> targeting Bengali-speaking Muslims \u2014 often derogatorily labeled as &#8220;Bangladeshi&#8221; or \u201cMiya\u201d.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The party in government accuses the previous government of allowing illegal settlement for <\/span><b>vote-bank politics<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Historical backdrop:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Assam&#8217;s political discourse has been shaped by the <\/span><b>Assam Agitation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (1979\u20131985).<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Assam Accord<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> set March 24, 1971, as the cut-off date for identifying and deporting illegal immigrants.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Intensification and Polarisation<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Aggressive measures:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The eviction has affected not only Muslims but also non-Muslim communities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Silsako Beel <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; a major wetland in Guwahati, saw demolition of houses of 130 families, including non-Muslims in 2022.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Between 2016 and July 2025, at least five people have died during these drives.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Rhetoric and data justification: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CM Himanta Biswa Sarma refers to \u201c<\/span><b>land jihad<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d and claims that<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">15,288.52 bighas of satra (Vaishnav monastery) land are encroached by people of doubtful citizenship.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3,620.9 sq km of forestland under encroachment (as of March 2024).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Exemptions and resettlements:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>The Forest Rights Act 2006<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> protections apply to tribal dwellers before 2005.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Ahom families<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> evicted along with Muslims were fast-tracked for resettlement.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Regional Impact and Neighbouring States\u2019 Reaction<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Northeast States on alert:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Neighbouring states<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, and Mizoram\u2014have heightened border vigilance.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Nagaland NGOs<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> accused Assam of pushing evictees into their territory.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Preventive actions:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Nagaland police<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> intercepted 200 vehicles carrying suspected illegal migrants.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some <\/span><b>extremist groups<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in Nagaland formed task forces to patrol borders.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Inner Line Permit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> issuance was made stricter by bordering States.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Evictions and Inter-State Border Disputes<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Encroachments and claims:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The issue ties into<\/span><b> unresolved border disputes<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> among NE States, especially where migrants have allegedly settled.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">83,000 hectares of Assam\u2019s land reportedly occupied by <\/span><b>Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Meghalaya.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Mutual allegations:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Other States <\/span><b>accuse Assam of using migrants<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to settle disputed border lands.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In turn, they have evicted suspected migrants, pushing them back to Assam.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Judicial intervention: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On July 30, 2025, the Gauhati High Court ordered all five States to form <\/span><b>high-level committees for coordinated eviction from forestlands.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Assam eviction drive is <\/span><b>not just an administrative exercise but a highly politicised and regionally sensitive issue <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">with implications for inter-State relations, ethnic tensions, and borderland governance in the Northeast.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It underscores the delicate balance between<\/span><b> land rights, environmental conservation, identity politics, and human rights.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Source:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/assam\/why-is-northeast-on-edge-about-assam-evictions-explained\/article69887908.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">TH<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Assam government\u2019s intensified eviction drives targeting alleged encroachments on forest and government lands, particularly by Bengali-speaking Muslims.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":58197,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[1979,60,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-57899","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-assams-eviction-drives","9":"tag-mains-articles","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57899"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57899\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}