‘At Most 1,000’: AIUDF MLA Rejects Claims of Mass Illegal Bangladeshi Presence

AIUDF MLA Aminul Islam, on February 2, rejected claims that a large number of Bangladeshi Muslims are living illegally in Assam, asserting that the actual figure would be extremely small if a proper verification exercise were conducted.

Speaking on the issue, Islam said a house-to-house survey would reveal that no more than around 1,000 Bangladeshi Muslims are residing illegally in the state. He argued that the citizenship status of Muslim residents in Assam has been examined repeatedly through various official processes over the years.

Referring to the National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise, Islam said Muslim communities faced the most intense scrutiny, with documents checked multiple times. He pointed out that in the second draft of the NRC, around 19 lakh people were excluded, of whom nearly 12 lakh were non-Muslims, while about 6 to 7 lakh were Muslims.

The AIUDF legislator stressed that those left out of the NRC cannot automatically be labelled as foreigners or Bangladeshis. He said the law allows excluded individuals to approach Foreigners Tribunals after receiving rejection slips, where they can present their documents for review.

According to Islam, a large majority of excluded Muslim applicants are likely to be declared Indian citizens once their cases are heard. On this basis, he maintained that the number of Bangladeshi Muslims living illegally in Assam would be very small, even after all checks and verification.

Islam also said the issue of illegal immigration is often exaggerated for political reasons, despite the extensive verification mechanisms already in place. His remarks come at a time when debates over illegal immigration, NRC outcomes and the identification of foreigners continue to remain politically sensitive issues in Assam.

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