GUWAHATI:
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday (Jan 1, 2026) said his government would not wait for a repatriation treaty between India and Bangladesh to step up its crackdown on “illegal immigrants” under a new policy framework. He exuded confidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would form the government for the third time in the state and continue its agenda of development and protection of the interests of indigenous people.
Mr. Sarma said about 2,000 foreigners who were staying illegally in Assam had been pushed back in the last few months. Among them, 18 were sent across the India-Bangladesh border on Wednesday (December 31, 2025).
“If last year’s eviction of foreigners from 1.45 million hectares of government land was a hallmark, 2026 will be marked by the number of evicted foreigners,” the chief minister told reporters during a customary New Year interaction. He thanked the Center for playing an active role in the suppression.
Mr. Sarma attributed the effort to the revitalization of the Immigrants (Deportation from Assam) Act, 1950, with a standard operating procedure for quick action, allowing district commissioners to issue orders to suspected foreigners to leave within 10 days or order deportation within 24 hours if they cannot prove citizenship.
Unregistered migrants leaving eastern border to triple in 2025 from 2024, government figures show
“We are not talking about a repatriation treaty (with Bangladesh) and we don’t need one. Just a push will be the new way to deal with foreigners,” he said, announcing the government’s commitment to step up identification and deportation of such people over the next five years.
The chief minister said he was confident that Assam would be able to evict 10,000 to 15,000 foreigners every year from 2026 onwards. He said the Assam Accord of 1985 had no guidelines on how “illegal immigrants” were to be expelled after detection. “The people who were declared foreigners were kept in the designated jail, but they managed to get out on bail early,” he said.
The Assam Accord, signed in August 1985 between the Center and the organizations that spearheaded the anti-foreigner agitation between 1979 and 1985, set 25 March 1971 as the final date for detection and deportation of “illegal immigrants”, regardless of their faith.
“The Center and the Assam government have decided that a person loses the right to live in India after being declared a foreigner. The Supreme Court also said that the district commissioner has the power to order the deportation of such people,” Sarma said.
“Developed State”
The Chief Minister said that Assam has been recognized as the fastest growing state in the country. “India’s growth between 2020 and 2025 was 29%. Assam’s growth rate during the same period was 45%. We are moving towards becoming a developed state,” he said, adding that per capita income has increased by 54%.
“These are not lofty claims, but figures provided by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The growth is seen in investments in major projects such as the ₹27,000 crore Tata semiconductor plant, the ₹10,601 crore fertilizer plant at Namrup and the ₹3,200 crore thermal plant at Chapar.
Mr. Sarma outlined a number of infrastructure projects, which include a 32 km elevated corridor near Kaziranga National Park, estimated to cost ₹ 6,957 crore and scheduled to be inaugurated on January 17 or 18 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The prime minister is also expected to lay the foundation stone of the proposed railway line and allied infrastructure to Asharam Gekrajharam Gekrajhutan western.
Another mega project in the pipeline is the ₹22,000 crore twin-tube tunnel under the Brahmaputra river connecting Gohpur on the north bank to Numaligarh on the south bank. “Initially it was a road project, but the prime minister advised us to add railways,” the chief minister said.
Justice for Zubeen
Mr. Sarma said Assam, despite the growth chart, remained poorer in 2025 after the death of cultural icon Zubeen Garg.
“Our government is determined to get justice for his family. On January 12, we will appoint a special public prosecutor, who will be assisted by a team of three to four criminal lawyers. The government will also approach the Gauhati High Court to set up a special court exclusively for this case to expedite proceedings and ensure transparency,” he said, praising the Special Investigation Team (SIT) for filing the chargesheet without delay.
Garg died on 19 September 2025 while swimming in the sea, a day before he was scheduled to perform at a cultural festival in Singapore. On January 14, a Singapore court is likely to open a coroner’s inquest into his death.
On the recent killing of Tripura student Anjela Chakma in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, the chief minister said people in mainland India should be educated about the Northeast to avoid similar incidents in future. The culprits should be charged and punished severely, he said.
Published – 1 Jan 2026 21:27 IST
