The eviction drive has been going on since September 20 in Dholpur 1 and Dholpur 3 villages in Sipajhar area. While the status of the injured person could not be ascertained, the police reported two casualties and maintained that 11 police personnel, including a DSP, were injured in the eviction drive at Dholpur.

One of the BJP government’s major poll promises before assembly elections in 2016 and 2021 was to free government land and land belonging to temples and monasteries from “encroachers” and allot them to “indigenous landless people” of the state. Similar drives evicted 70 families in Hojai’s Lanka town and 25 families in Sonitpur’s Jamugurihat town this June.

In Sipajhar, the government plans to implement a multi-crore ‘Garukhuti Project’—announced in the state budget 2021-22—which aims to use the land freed up for afforestation and agriculture activities involving indigenous youth. Such drives have often drawn criticism from opposition parties and human rights activists over the eviction of people without a proper rehabilitation plan.

It’s widely believed in Assam that most of these “encroachers” are alleged illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. In 2017, the interim report of a six-member committee for the protection of land rights of indigenous people of Assam, headed by former chief election commissioner H.S. Brahma, said that alleged illegal Bangladeshi migrants dominated in as many as 15 of the 33 districts of Assam.

“Illegal Bangladeshis descend on the land like an army of marauding invaders armed with dangerous weapons, set up illegal villages, mostly on the char lands overnight, in full view and with the tacit, if not active, connivance and encouragement of corrupt government officers, as also with abetment of communal political leaders,” read the report.

The Brahma committee report also says that the identity of as many as 18 Xatras (Vaishnavite monasteries that are cultural hubs in Assam) was under threat following large-scale encroachment by alleged illegal Bangladeshi migrants.

In July 2012, a study by the Northeast Policy Institute found 5,548 bighas of land belonging to 26 Xatras encroached upon by alleged illegal settlers. A Right to Information (RTI) application revealed encroachment of close to 4 lakh hectares of forestland, adding up to 22 per cent of the state’s forest cover.

An eviction drive conducted by the administration in Darrang district in Assam turned violent after the illegal encroachers of the land attacked the security forces. While 9 policemen were injured in the attack by the mob of illegal encroachers, 2 attackers were killed in retaliatory police firing.

The incident took place at the Dholpur in the Garukhuti area near the Sipajhar town in Darrang district in Assam, where the Himanta Biswa Sarma government is conducting an eviction drive of illegal settlers on land belonging to the government or other organisations like temples. When the eviction party reached the place inhabited Bengali speaking Muslims on Thursday, thousands of people clashed with the police, attacking them with stones, machetes, pointed bamboo sticks etc.

As the mob could not be dispersed even by using tear gas shells, and several policemen were injured in the attack, the police opened fire on the attackers. According to SP Sushanta Biswa Sarma, the condition of one policeman is critical.

Today’s eviction drive was conducted at Dholpur Bazar area, West Chuba, Dholpur no 1 and Dholpur 3 under the Sipajhar revenue circle. While the drive was going on smoothly in the morning, the drive faced strong protests in Dholpur No 1 and Dholpur 3, and cops were attacked there.

According to the administration, the people living in the area were served notices to vacate the encroached land well in advance, and when they didn’t comply with the notices, the eviction drive was conducted.

Sources in the Assam government said that Dholpur is an area with 25000 acres of land along with a 5,000 years old Shiva temple and a cave. This area is facing encroachment and gradually more people are coming and settling there. . According to the govt, around 30,000 acres of land have been encroached upon by Bangladeshi immigrants. As a result, indigenous people are completely devastated. This has also led to an increase in incidents of robbery and dacoity in the area, and the locals blame the encroachers for the same.

Given this situation, the state govt has taken up the eviction initiative after discussions with local Muslims. They were promised alternate land as per land policy, and they had agreed to the same. The govt said that the eviction drive in the last two days was peaceful, but today 10,000 people attacked police and in retaliation police was forced to fire, causing the death of two people.

According to the govt sources, over 10,000 people who attacked police during the eviction drive were Muslim immigrants.

On being asked about the Dholpur incident, Chief Minister Sarma told INDIA TODAY that he had ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident. “I condemn the episode. It was unfortunate. We will take strict action if any violation is found in the inquiry,” he said.

The state government has ordered a judicial enquiry into the entire incident. State Govt is in touch with all Muslim organisations so that situation remains normal, and the Muslim leaders have assured full cooperation from their side. At present, the situation is under control. Govt says that indigenous people in Assam are happy with the eviction drive.

Sarma's eviction drive against encroachers on government, forest and temple land was criticised as being directed at migrant Muslims.

He said that the government had evicted encroachers regardless of their religious background. "We evicted people from Geetanagar (in Guwahati on 26 June) who are all Hindus and indigenous Assamese," he said, adding that it was an unfortunate truth that the encroachment was higher on that side [migrant Muslims].

"For me, encroachers are a class who turn out to be Muslims or Hindus when the action is taken on the ground. As chief minister, my duty is to protect the forests and I don’t have to see which religion the evicted belong to. The Supreme Court and the High Court keep passing orders for ensuring that the forest cover does not reduce. I am just acting according to the national policy," he said.

"As for land belonging to Satras (Vaishnav monasteries) and namghars (community prayer halls), we are on the same page as the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front [AIUDF]. There was unanimity across the board when I appealed in the Assembly for Hindus not to occupy mosque land and Muslims not to occupy the land of the Satras and namghars," he added.

A video from the eviction drive has been widely condemned on social media, where a man with a camera in hand, who appears to be a photojournalist, was seen jumping on the body of a man shot by security forces. The disturbing video shows a local man chasing the photographer with a machete in hand. The photographer runs towards the security forces to save his life, and the policemen shot at the man who was charging towards them. After the attacker drops to the ground, presumably dead, the photographer jumps on his body, before being taken away by the security forces.

“The moment I saw the video, I ordered the immediate arrest of the photographer. There is zero tolerance for such actions,” Assam DGP Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta told INDIA TODAY.

This incident is also being probed by the police, and the cameraman has been arrested by the police.

Earlier on Monday, the administration had evicted around 800 families, clearing about 4500 bighas of encroached land in the same region.