Guwahati: “Not everyone is a Dhurandhar, especially in Assam!” This is what Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said after security forces deported 21 Bangladeshi infiltrators from the state.
On the night of July 29, security forces pushed back 21 immigrants residing illegally in Assam. CM Sarma said, “21 Bangladeshi infiltrators tested their mettle to survive illegally in Assam but were promptly identified by the OGs in the game- Assam police and appropriate action was initiated to neutralise the threat they posed.” he further mentioned that illegal infiltration will not be allowed to undermine Assam’s security and identity.
Meanwhile, on the night of 28 July, 18 more illegal immigrants were sent back to their origin by security forces from Assam. As part of the government’s continued measures against infiltration, strict action has been taken against 18 infiltrators.
CM Sarma said,”Our vigilance remains uncompromising, with strict monitoring and action continuing 24×7.” The BJP-led NDA government in Assam has repatriated over 1679 Bangladeshi nationals from the state in the last two years. CM and Home Minister Sarma recently disclosed in the state assembly that a total of 1,679 Bangladeshi infiltrators were sent back to Bangladesh between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2026.
AIUDF chief and Binnakandi MLA Badruddin Ajmal raised a question in the Assam Assembly asking the Home and Political Department for details on the push-back of infiltrators to Bangladesh over the last two years. He wanted to know how many people were deported, the process followed to identify and declare them as foreigners, whether any of them had approached the courts, and whether the government had formally coordinated with Bangladesh before sending them back. In the written reply, the Home Department provided details of the authority that identified or declared each person an infiltrator. The government clarified that no one is deported if their case is still pending before the High Court or Supreme Court. However, it does not have any record of whether those already deported had earlier filed appeals in higher courts.
The government explained that citizenship is a subject handled by the Centre, not the state. CM Sarma informed the state assembly that the government is just following the instructions and circulars issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs from time to time, including circulars from 2009, 2020, and 2025, along with a state government order from October 2025, all implemented under the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950. The state clarified that it does not deal directly with Bangladesh or any other foreign government — that is entirely the Centre’s responsibility.
The government maintained that it only carries out the laws and directions passed down by the Centre, and that adequate safeguards are followed to ensure no individual’s human rights are violated during the process.
It should be mentioned that the opposition parties, mainly Congress and AIUDF, are constantly raising objections to the pushback process going on in the state. The opposition is levelling accusations of inhumanity against the process and demanding an immediate halt to it. But the Assam government has clarified that those who were deported are under the category of Declared Foreign Nationals (DFN), Convicted Foreign Nationals (CFN) by the Foreigners Tribunal or Fresh Infiltrators.
