Guwahati, Nov 9 — Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has asserted that there will be no relaxation in the state's eviction drives against alleged encroachment, maintaining that the government is acting against illegal occupation irrespective of the religious identity of those affected.
Addressing a gathering during his visit to Lahowal in the Dibrugarh district on Monday, the Chief Minister said that eviction operations were not restricted to any particular community and that people from Hindu as well as Muslim communities had faced action.
"Not only minorities, but Hindus have also been evicted," Sarma said, reiterating his government's position that the exercise was aimed at reclaiming government and protected forest land.
His remarks come amid renewed political debate over the state's anti-encroachment campaign following a major eviction operation in Dhubri district on November 1.
The district administration launched the drive in Alamganj locality under Gauripur circle to clear approximately 650 bighas, or nearly 215 acres, of allegedly encroached government land.
Officials had issued notices to around 700 families occupying nearly 800 bighas. However, the administration excluded approximately 150 bighas from the operation after affected residents approached the court for relief.
The latest drive follows large-scale eviction operations in Golaghat, Hojai and Nagaon in October, during which the government claimed to have cleared more than 638 hectares of encroached land, affecting around 1,000 families.
Eviction has remained a major political and administrative issue in Assam since the BJP government came to power in 2021. The government maintains that reclaiming forest, government and community land is essential for protecting ecological resources and preventing illegal occupation.
However, opposition parties and civil society groups have questioned the humanitarian consequences, rehabilitation arrangements and alleged disproportionate impact on Bengali-speaking Muslim families.
The issue is likely to remain politically contentious as the government signals that its land-reclamation campaign will continue. The eviction campaign has also expanded beyond Lower Assam.
In October, the administration resumed operations in the Jamuna-Maudanga Reserved Forest in Hojai district, targeting 152 families and seeking to reclaim around 525 bighas. This followed an earlier operation in January, when 1,098 families were evicted, and approximately 700 hectares of land were reclaimed, according to reports.
Sarma has repeatedly defended the operations, arguing that the state cannot allow government and forest land to remain under unauthorised occupation.
He has also maintained that the campaign is necessary to protect Assam's land and indigenous interests.
The opposition, meanwhile, has demanded greater transparency over land ownership claims, due process and rehabilitation of displaced families.
The central question surrounding Assam's eviction policy remains whether the government's land-reclamation objectives can be pursued while ensuring adequate legal safeguards and humane treatment of affected residents.