Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that the growing economic prosperity among Muslims in the state reflects a significant social and cultural transformation, warning that it may signal the beginning of what he described as the “surrender of the Assamese people.”
Speaking at a press conference after a cabinet meeting, Sarma asserted that Assam is not only undergoing demographic changes but also a broader economic shift. “Apart from demographic change, there has been a shift in wealth creation as well. Earlier, we thought only the numbers had risen, but now even the wealth pattern has changed,” he said.
Citing government data from 2001 to 2011, the Chief Minister said the Hindu population’s growth rate has declined while the Muslim population has continued to rise across all administrative blocks of the state. “In every block of Assam, the growth of the Hindu population is coming down and the Muslim population is increasing,” he noted.
Sarma called the trend a matter of cultural and economic concern, stating, “Demographic change has taken place rapidly… in a way, a chapter of the Assamese people’s surrender has begun.”
He also referred to an increase in land transactions from Hindus to Muslims, which he said the government is monitoring under a directive issued last year that requires official approval for such sales. “We are seeing that the sale of land from Hindus to Muslims is very high, while the vice versa is less,” Sarma said.
The Chief Minister clarified that the government has no objection to land deals between Assamese Hindus and indigenous Muslims, emphasising that the directive aims to ensure transparency and awareness about land ownership patterns. “We don’t have any problem with that,” he said.
Highlighting the long-term implications of these shifts, Sarma remarked, “You can sometimes accept demographic change, but witnessing an economic shift signals complete destruction.” He added that detailed data and analysis on the issue would be shared in a forthcoming press briefing.
The directive requiring prior clearance from the Chief Minister’s Office for inter-community land transactions, he said, enables the government to track “who is buying, who is selling, and what that means for the future of Assamese society.”
