"Not a Single Hindu Bengali D-Voter Will Lose Land Under BJP": Ranjeet Kumar Dass

Assam Cabinet Minister Ranjeet Kumar Dass made explosive remarks on the D-voter issue during a BJP booth meeting at Dhupguri in Baksa district.

Speaking to the media, Dass asserted that as long as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and the BJP are in power, “not a single Hindu Bengali D-voter will lose even a piece of land, let alone face eviction.”

The minister’s comments came amid widespread protests across the state by the All Assam Bengali Youth Students’ Federation (AABYSF), which has been demanding the withdrawal of the D-voter tag.

Dass further claimed that when AASU stages protests, they speak for the interests of “Goriya, Moriya, Deshi or Bhatia” communities, but in practice, they only stand for “the entire Muslim community.” He added that while AABYSF has now raised its voice, during agitations involving Assamese or Koch-Rajbongshi groups, they remained silent.

“Hindu Bengalis should not worry about being tagged D-voters. Out of the 82,000 D-voters in Assam, only 2,100 are in Baksa district. I know exactly how many among them are Bengali Hindus, Rajbongshis, or religious minorities, so I am not at all concerned,” Dass said.

He maintained that all Hindus of Bengali or Rajbongshi origin are part of “Akhand Bharat” and many had migrated to India after facing persecution in regions of undivided India. “They naturally deserve Indian citizenship. That is why the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has been implemented,” he said.

Dass explained that those who settled in India before December 31, 2014, will be eligible for citizenship under the CAA. He also argued that the D-voter tag cannot last forever. “As per the definition, it is only for ten years. After ten years, no one can remain a D-voter,” he added, dismissing the controversy as opposition politics.

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