Himanta-led Assam Government's Policies ‘Bear Signatures of Ethnic Cleansing’, Warn Activists
New Delhi: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's recent remarks on Bengali-speaking Muslims living in his state challenge India's core constitutional principles and his government's actions “[bear] the hallmark signatures of ethnic cleansing”, a group of academics, activists and lawyers have warned.
In a statement bearing 188 signatures and which is reproduced at the end of this article, they also said that the chief minister's “alarmingly divisive and despicable” statements “[usher] in a new era of impunity for hate speech in this state”.
Deeming the depiction of Bengali-speaking Muslims as ‘infiltrators’ or outsiders to be “deeply ahistorical”, they said that the Sarma government's alleged “increased surveillance and policing” of the ethnic group, “weaponisation of citizenship determination/foreigner detection laws to declare [them] as foreigners” and “targeted demolitions of homes and public structures in Muslim-majority districts” characterise a “policy programme that now bears the hallmark signatures of ethnic cleansing”.
“The United Nations broadly defines ethnic cleansing as ‘a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic or religious group from certain geographic areas’. The actions of the Sarma government are perilously close to this definition,” the signatories said.
They also pointed to a report of many Muslim people being nominated en bloc for deletion from the voter rolls as well as of members of the Bengali Muslim community being evicted or summarily deported to Bangladesh.
Assam's ongoing special revision has been in the spotlight due to reports of people in several Muslim-majority districts being nominated ‘in bulk’ for deletion, prompting “panic and anxiety among Bengal-origin Muslims”, as noted by Scroll. The claims and objections phase of the exercise, where election officials adjudicate on nominations for inclusion in and deletion from the rolls, concludes Monday (February 2) and the final voter list is to be published on February 10.
Unequivocally condemning the Sarma government's policies and the CM's remarks that “challenge the core constitutional principles of justice, equality and secularism”, the signatories expressed pride in Assam's “rich multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-linguistic history” and insisted that elected leaders “[uphold] the democratic principles of pluralistic coexistence, equality and justice.”
Sarma recently said – among other things – that it was “his job” to make ‘Miya’ Muslims “suffer” and exhorted listeners to do the same so that the group leaves Assam.
He and his BJP, Sarma said, “are directly against Miyas … We are saying it openly; we are not hiding it … We are ensuring that they cannot vote in Assam.”
Earlier he had also suggested that notices under the ongoing special revision in Assam are being served only to Bengali-speaking Muslims.
Among the statement's signatories is human rights defender and former IAS officer Harsh Mander, who filed a police complaint against Sarma for his remark and against whom the chief minister has threatened “at least 100 cases”. Mander told The Wire Hindi that he would continue doing his work.
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Public statement condemning the hateful and divisive rhetoric of the Assam chief minister against Bengali Muslims
As scholars, activists, lawyers, and concerned citizens, we strongly condemn the prejudicial and alarmingly hateful rhetoric of the Hon'ble Chief Minister (CM) of Assam, Mr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, against a section of the minority population of the state in the run up to the assembly election later this year.
In a recent event in Digboi, Sarma stated in the context of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that his intention is to "make the Miya people suffer". The term 'Miya' is a pejorative reference to the state's significant population of Bengali Muslims, who are often prejudicially framed as 'outsiders', 'foreigners' and 'infiltrators'. Sarma's communally-inflamed rhetoric positions them as deserving of nothing but suffering at the hands of the Assamese people.
The Assam CM has not only brazenly expressed his government's intent to send objection notices to the 'Miya' people to ensure that at least "4-5 lakh" of them are dropped from voter rolls, but also pointedly called on the majority to mount a sectarian economic boycott by paying them lesser than they deserve in informal jobs (such as rickshaw pullers). Sarma, further, has explicitly stated that his government has evicted only the 'Miya' as part of an ongoing campaign of forced evictions across the state, sparing the 'indigenous Assamese Muslims'.
Mr. Sarma's words are alarmingly divisive and despicable, and reflect a worsening climate of hatred towards the Bengali Muslim community in Assam. While discrimination against the community is not new in Assam, this represents an unprecedented escalation on the part of an elected political leader holding a constitutional post and ushers in a new era of impunity for hate speech in this state.
The framing of Bengali-Muslims as 'infiltrators' or 'outsiders' is deeply ahistorical. The people to whom Sarma refers were born and raised in Assam; they belong to India and Assam in every way. Through increased surveillance and policing, weaponisation of citizenship determination/foreigner detection laws to declare Bengali Muslims as 'foreigners', and targeted demolitions of homes and public structures in Muslim-majority districts, this government is putting together a policy programme that now bears the hallmark signatures of ethnic cleansing.
The United Nations broadly defines ethnic cleansing as "a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic or religious group from certain geographic areas". The actions of the Sarma government are perilously close to this definition.
Worryingly, Sarma's words are not confined to just verbal iterations. Through law, policing and violence, he is keeping his word - he is making Bengali-Muslims suffer, as indicated by journalistic reports on [special revision]-linked exclusions, forced evictions and forced transfer of Bengali-Muslims into Bangladesh.
The majoritarianism of the government has seismic consequences on the lives of this minority - including expulsion from their homes and the country, the infliction of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, and the arbitrary deprivation of life. As members of the academic community, activist fraternity and civil society, we refuse to be silent and unequivocally condemn the Assam government's discriminatory violence against the state's Bengali-Muslims. We also express alarm at the impunity with which the CM continues to openly target a specific group of people belonging to an ethno-religious minority and in doing so, challenge the core constitutional principles of justice, equality and secularism.
We demand that this government cease its policies of unlawful pushbacks to Bangladesh; the unlawful demolition of homes and public structures; the unlawful stripping of voting rights from citizens of India; and the use of rhetoric designed to dehumanise and exclude the Bengali-Muslims of Assam. We are proud of Assam's rich multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-linguistic history and fiercely insist on elected leaders upholding the democratic principles of pluralistic coexistence, equality and justice.
Signed in solidarity
- Padmini Baruah (Pakeezeh), National University of Singapore
- Douglas McDonald-Norman, University of Technology Sydney
- Debasreeta Deb, University of Hyderabad
- Angshuman Choudhury, researcher and writer
- Anjuman Ara Begum, Social worker and human rights researcher
- Angana Chakrabarti, Independent Journalist
- Sabita Lahkar, Independent Journalist and social worker
- Ammu Joseph, Independent journalist and author
- Mukul Kalita, Independent Journalist
- SK Abid Hasan, Politician, Independent Researcher
- Revathi Siva Kumar, Independent Journalist
- Saikat Bhattacharya, Kolkata
- Maitreyee Boruah, Independent journalist
- Lara Jesani, People’s Union for Civil Liberties
- Sumona Choudhury
- Chittajit Mitra, PUCL
- David Fernandes
- Feroze Mithiborwala, Hum Bharat Ke Log
- Frazer Mascarenhas, Academic administrator
- Rukhshanda Naz, Women & Peace Activist
- Bruce K Thangkhal, KV MEDIA
- Diya Sameer, Centre for Study of Society and Secularism
- Sandhya Gokhale, Forum Against Oppression of Women
- Cynthia Stephen, Independent policy analyst
- Adv Dr Shalu Nigam, Lawyer
- Linda Chhakchhuak, Concerned Citizen
- Hemant M, Human Rights Activist
- Teesta Setalvad
- Aranyani B, Dancer and choreographer
- Samita Chatterjee, Visual Artist
- Rehana
- Geeta Seshu, Journalist
- Suhayel Al Subid, MBBS student (final year)
- Ngul Min Thang, OCBC
- Mukta Srivastava
- Prof. Mohan Rao, Former professor JNU
- Chayanika Shah, Member, Forum Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai
- Preeti Dash
- Vrijendra
- Pervin Sanghvi
- Sarayu Pani
- Irfan Engineer, Citizens for the Constitution
- Sumita Hazarika, Lawyer
- Beena Choksi
- Norbert mrndonca
- Devdan Tribhuvan
- Vinodini Lulla
- Aheli Moitra, Journalist & academic
- Swati Narayan
- सुनील मनवर
- Neeta Kolhatkar
- Manoranjan Pegu
- Geeta K, Concerned Citizen
- Ashish Kabra
- Arif Hossein
- K.Ravi Chander, Activist
- Vinay Sreenivasa, Advocate, Bengaluru
- Aparna Asar
- Ramneek Singh, Playwright and Teacher
- Pari Saikia, Human Trafficking Journalist(Independent), and campaigner #kNOwHumanTrafficking
- Kalim Ahmed, Research Manager, Tech Global Institute (TGI)
- Ronjini Ray
- Masaddar Hussain, General Secretary, Assam Civil Society
- Bernard Dmello
- Indranil Biswas
- Ishita C, Lawyer, researcher
- Reza Mahmud
- Stanley Fernandez, Citizens For the Constitution
- sujata gothoskar, forum against oppression of women
- Anurag Das, National University of Singapore
- Raina Bhattacharya
- Varada B
- Ashis Kumar Das, RTD Banker
- Alexio Fernandes, IRD Cell, OLLC Orlem Church and BCS
- Swathi Soren
- Sameer Wagle, Mumbai for Peace
- Adil Al Ayubi
- Syed Irfan, Citizen
- Pushpendra, PUCL
- Ravleen Kaur, Journalist
- Bulbul Azad
- Rashida Tapadar
- Shikha Nehra, PhD Student, Stanford University
- Salome Roy Kapur
- Rohan Dsouza
- Taniya Laskar, Advocate
- Kumudini, Independent
- Nisha Biswas
- Badruzzaman Mazumdar, Mental Therapist
- Manas Das, Forum for Social Harmony
- Padmanav Baruah, PhD student, Illinois State University
- Monika patel, Content creator and writer
- Deepak Goswami, Axom Nagarik Samaj
- Devabrata Sharma, URMCA
- Snehal Shah
- Rinita Singh, Citizen
- Amita Sheereen
- Sherena R Khan
- Sishir Dey, Advocate and Human Rights Activist
- Jeba Akhtar
- Forhad Ali, Colours of Peace (NGO)
- Nargis Choudhury, Research Scholar
- Oliullah Laskar, Advocate, Gauhati High Court
- Md Alim Uddin sheikh, Lawyer, Social activist
- Aijoni Das, Social Worker
- Gangadharan Menon, Visiting Professor
- Roukim Hengna, Msc, MA & Investor
- Shelima Samim
- Dr. Sima Ghosh, RTD. Associate Professor, Writer
- Surath Zamal Ahmed, Former Student Leader, ABMSU
- Asifa Yasmin
- Paresh Hate
- Imamul Hussain, M.A, B.Ed, Kokrajhar, Assam
- Zamser Ali, Journalist and Politician
- Nasir, Social Entrepreneur
- Neelam Narayan
- Geet (Sangeeta Goel), Independent artist and educator
- Moumita Alam, Poet and essayist
- Abdul Halim
- Kalparnab Gupta, Reasearch Scholar & Civil Rights Activist
- Khan Ashraful Alom
- Firoz, Concerned Citizen
- Prateek Vijayavargia, JNU
- Hena Naaz, Student
- Sohrab Mohammed Laskar
- Puja, University of Bristol
- Anwarul Islam Laskar
- Nilanjana Das, Social Worker
- Mohan Kumar
- Gautam Mody, New Trade Union Initiative
- Prabhakar Kumar, Patna
- Ananye Krishna
- Moinul Hoque Khan, Social Worker
- Prashant Bhaware
- Amritlal Das, Social Activist, General Secretary, Sara Asom Bengali Oikyomoncha, Assam
- Ajit Patowary, Independent
- Shahbaz
- Gulshan Banas
- Amrita
- Mohd Salman Ansari, Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI)
- Mustafa Salim
- Martin Lalpekhlua Blah, University of Bristol
- Samuel Pachuau, ZYWC (Member)
- Khuptawn Eng, Independent Researcher
- Samuel Pachuau, ZYWC
- Samuel Lalrinsiama
- Monowar Hussain
- Habibul Hoque
- Shankar Gopal, Chetna Andolan
- Kamru Choudhury, Civil Engineer
- Suraj Gogoi
- Shiraz bulsara prabhu, PUCL
- Dr. Mahmud Hassan
- N. Jayaram, Journalist
- Sweta Dash, Researcher and Independent journalist
- Lotika, Concerned Citizen
- Rajeev, Concerned Citizen
- Mary M
- Jaheer Ahmed Choudhury
- Afjalur Rahman
- Miftaul Haque, Citizen
- Sruti, concerned citizen
- Asif Hussain, Patriot and concerned citizen
- Yanur rahman
- Pushpamala N, Independent artist
- Jisan Ali, Jadavpur University
- Prerna, University of Delhi
- Juheb Hussain
- Imran Farhad
- Kazi Alien Rana, citizen
- Ameya Bokil
- Farhan Ahmed Axom, Citizen
- Kamrul islam Laskar
- Qamar ul
- Rashminara Laskar
- Zubair Rahman, a concerned citizen
- Ruth Hnamte, ZYWC
- 188. Harsh Mander, Karwan e Mohabbat
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