India Tomorrow
NEW DELHI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has announced plans to implement stringent laws targeting religious conversions and land transactions between Hindus and Muslims.
He made these announcements at a BJP state executive meeting in Guwahati on Sunday.
Sarma stated that the government would introduce legislation making religious conversions punishable by life imprisonment, specifically addressing concerns over “love jihad”—a term used by Hindu right-wing groups alleging that Muslim men manipulate Hindu women into converting to Islam through romantic relationships.
Similar laws exist in states like Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
Sarma also revealed the state’s intention to regulate land transactions between Hindus and Muslims, requiring the chief minister’s consent for such dealings. He expressed concern about land transfers to Muslims, particularly in Lower Assam’s Goalpara region, which he claimed have marginalized the indigenous Koch Rajbongshi community. The proposed law would restrict land sales to certain communities, aiming to protect the land rights of tribal, Scheduled Caste (SC), and Other Backward Class (OBC) populations in the area.
Additionally, Sarma mentioned plans to limit land transactions in culturally significant regions like Barpeta, Majuli, and Batadrava to native Assamese people. He also emphasized that the state government is working on a “domicile policy” that would reserve government job opportunities exclusively for individuals born in Assam, highlighting the government’s commitment to prioritizing indigenous youth in employment. These measures, according to Sarma, are part of the government’s efforts to protect the rights of indigenous people and fulfill election promises made in 2021.
