Qalam Times News Network
Exclusive Political Dispatch – June 2, 2025
Guwahati – In a startling affirmation that has sent ripples through political and human rights circles, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has confirmed that the state is actively deporting individuals identified as “foreigners” into Bangladesh. This move, he asserted, aligns with a Supreme Court directive issued earlier this year.
Sarma, breaking his silence after a series of detentions carried out by the State’s Foreigner Tribunals (FTs), referenced the Supreme Court order dated February 4, 2025, delivered by a bench comprising Justices Abhay Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan. According to the Chief Minister, the Court’s guidance was unequivocal: those declared foreigners, particularly those who failed to appeal, are to be returned to their country of origin by “any means necessary.”
Speaking at a press briefing on Friday, Sarma elaborated, “The Hon’ble Supreme Court has clearly instructed us: individuals declared as foreigners must be repatriated. Those who have not sought recourse through appeal will be pushed back across the border. However, we shall not act against those engaged in lawful appeals.”
The remarks came on the heels of public outrage and confusion, following viral videos from Bangladesh allegedly showing individuals previously unaccounted for by their families in Assam. Families claimed they received no prior notification regarding the detention or deportation of their kin.
The February 4 judgment had dealt with a group of 63 detainees housed at the Matia Transit Camp, a facility designated for individuals identified as illegal immigrants. At the time, the state government had admitted the deportation process remained stalled due to lack of verified residential details in Bangladesh necessary for consular coordination.
Sarma’s recent statements indicate a policy shift aimed at intensifying the drive to identify and expel undocumented residents. “We are accelerating the identification process. More detentions are imminent. Deportations will increase, with the Union Government facilitating dialogue with the Bangladesh government,” he noted. This pushback policy, he confirmed, has already resulted in hundreds being returned to Bangladesh in the aftermath of the Pahalgam administrative crackdown.
Gaurav Gogoi vs. Himanta Biswa: A Looming Battle of Legacies in 2026
In what resembles a duel drawn from the pages of feudal lore, the political landscape of Assam braces for a high-stakes confrontation between two scions of power. The elevation of Gaurav Gogoi as President of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee, announced on May 26, marks not only a symbolic coronation but a direct challenge to the BJP’s political strongman, Himanta Biswa Sarma.
Gogoi, son of the late Tarun Gogoi—the Congress stalwart who governed Assam for fifteen formative years—is now poised as the principal contender for the chief ministerial berth in the 2026 state assembly elections. This is more than a generational baton pass; it is a call for political redemption after a decade-long eclipse endured by the Congress party.
A key architect of Assam’s modern identity, Tarun Gogoi’s legacy of governance continues to lend moral weight to his son’s ascent. But the Congress is not resting on nostalgia alone. In Gaurav, they are projecting a reinvigorated leadership persona—articulate, assertive, and now battle-hardened after his resounding victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Jorhat.
That win was no ordinary contest. With his traditional bastion, Kaliabor, dissolved by the recent delimitation exercise, Gogoi was forced to seek mandate from Jorhat—a district Sarma had virtually turned into a BJP fortress. Yet, defying odds and machinery, Gogoi emerged victorious by a margin exceeding 1.44 lakh votes, shattering Sarma’s carefully cultivated aura of electoral invincibility.
In preparation for the 2026 contest, the Congress has deftly balanced its team across Assam’s ethnic and social spectrum. The appointment of three working presidents—Jakir Hussain Sikdar (Bengali-origin Muslim), Roselina Tirkey (tea tribe), and Pradip Sarkar (Bengali Hindu)—signals a strategy of inclusive consolidation. Gogoi himself represents the Ahom community, a historically influential group in Assam’s political calculus.
However, the battleground is already fraught. Sarma, never one to shy away from pugilistic politicking, has hurled incendiary allegations against Gogoi’s British wife, Elizabeth Colburn—accusing her of links with Pakistani agencies and insinuating that Gogoi’s political bearings were shaped by ISI invitations. Gogoi, unfazed, dismissed the claims as a “C-grade Bollywood screenplay,” challenging Sarma’s mental acuity and reinforcing his own narrative of decency and democratic resolve.
Despite his national profile and inner-party ascendancy, Gaurav’s footing remains delicate. The Congress failed to secure even a single Zila Parishad seat in Jorhat during the recent panchayat polls—an ominous sign in a region that was once his familial fief.
As Assam readies for what promises to be a fierce and fateful election, the people face a stark choice between Sarma’s brand of muscular, infrastructure-heavy governance and Gogoi’s vision of inclusive growth and social justice.
The coming year shall not merely decide a chief minister—it shall determine the soul and direction of Assam’s polity for a generation to come.
Reported by Qalam Times News Network | Political Affairs Bureau
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