Affected residents have questioned the selective nature of the operation, alleging that Muslim households were targeted while Hindu families living in the same area were left untouched
NEW DELHI — More than four decades after fleeing the anti-Muslim violence of 1983, 132 Bengali Muslim families in Assam’s Lakhimpur district have once again been rendered homeless after the district administration demolished their houses in Boginadi on November 13.
The eviction drive, carried out on land designated as a Professional Grazing Reserve (PGR), saw bulldozers raze the homes of the affected families and a mosque, leaving hundreds of residents without shelter.
According to reports, the administration demolished houses belonging to 132 families, citing alleged encroachment on grazing land. However, affected residents have questioned the selective nature of the operation, alleging that Muslim households were targeted while Hindu families living in the same area were left untouched.
“Why were only Muslim families’ homes demolished?” a resident affected by the eviction asked.
The families maintain that people from different communities, including Muslims, Hindus, Nepalis, Misings, Bodos and Assamese, have lived alongside one another in the area for generations. They allege that despite this shared history, the demolition drive disproportionately affected Muslim households.
With their homes reduced to rubble, several displaced families have taken shelter along a nearby riverbank. However, they say they are struggling to find safety even there, alleging that police personnel have been asking them to vacate the area.
“We have nowhere to go. Muslim houses were targeted. We are now on the bank of the river, and the police are chasing us away from this area,” one displaced resident said.
Another resident expressed anger over what they described as a betrayal by those in power.
“They came asking for votes during the elections, and now they have demolished our homes. Are we from Bangladesh?” the resident asked.
The families have demanded an explanation from the authorities, questioning why their houses were demolished while those of their Hindu neighbours were allegedly spared.
Academic and writer Apoorvanand also expressed anguish over the demolitions in a post on X, writing, “We are silently watching this atrocity. We will not be forgiven.”
Journalist Saba Naqvi also criticised the demolitions and the allegations of selective targeting, posting on X: “Shame on us.”
For these families, the latest demolition is about more than the loss of their homes. It has reopened memories of the displacement that began in 1983, when communal violence forced their families to leave their original homes. They say the government subsequently provided them land to settle on, where they spent decades building houses, raising children and establishing their lives.
Now, with their homes flattened and belongings scattered, many have been left struggling to find shelter and rebuild their lives.
The district administration has cited alleged encroachment on grazing land as the justification for the eviction drive. However, the residents’ allegations of selective action have raised questions about the manner in which the operation was carried out.
The demolitions have also triggered criticism on social media, with several users expressing concern over the treatment of religious minorities and the alleged targeting of Muslim families.
One user on X described the demolitions as part of what they called a systematic campaign against Muslims in India, writing: “A systematic campaign targeting Muslims in India. The Indian regime has literally destroyed their lives. The media will not talk about this because the victims are Muslims.”
Another user drew a comparison with the suffering of Palestinians, writing: “How is this any different from what Palestinians endure every single day? The unbridled epicaricacy displayed by the Indian state post 2014 as they torment minorities remorselessly (which is not to reduce the injustices they’ve suffered prior to that), is barbarous beyond belief.”
