The government of Assam, an Indian state bordering Muslim-majority Bangladesh, has announced plans to issue gun licenses to “indigenous” residents, prompting concern among the region’s Muslim communities.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), stated that the initiative is aimed at protecting Assamese-speaking locals who, he claims, face threats from across the border and within their own villages.
Assam, home to about 31 million people, is marked by complex ethnic, linguistic, and religious divisions and has a history of violent clashes. According to the 2011 census, Muslims — most of them Bengali-speaking — make up approximately 35% of the population, while the majority are Hindus.
On Wednesday, Sarma introduced a new online platform that allows indigenous residents living in sensitive areas and feeling threatened to apply for firearms licenses. This comes despite India’s typically strict gun control regulations.
The announcement drew swift backlash from critics. Opposition Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi warned via social media that the decision could fuel gang violence and personal vendettas, calling it a dangerous step toward lawlessness.
The move aligns with the BJP’s broader campaign in Assam to prioritize the rights of Assamese-speaking communities. This includes widespread eviction operations against those Sarma has labeled “illegal foreigners or doubtful citizens” — a campaign widely perceived as targeting Bengali-speaking Muslims.
Despite this, many ethnic Bengalis in Assam are long-standing Indian citizens, with family histories in the region dating back before the 1947 partition that led to the creation of Bangladesh.
Assam was also the first Indian state to carry out a contentious citizenship verification process in 2019, which excluded nearly two million residents, many of whom were Muslim.
Tensions in the state have escalated further following the ousting of Bangladesh’s former autocratic government, a close ally of Modi’s BJP. Sarma has claimed that recent political changes in Bangladesh have heightened insecurity among Assam’s border communities.
