Meet The 'D Voters' Of Assam's Us Versus Them Elections

Barpeta, Assam : For 15 years, 48-year-old Javed Ali and about 80 others in Barpeta's Fingua village have battled the Assam government in court. The government says they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. The people claim they have papers to prove otherwise.

The cases have not moved. But now, on orders from the Gauhati High Court, the government is moving them to Assam's infamous and unique "D Voter" or "Doubtful Voter list". Being on the list means no voting rights and a chance of being sent off to government detention camps.

"Our situation is like that of a football. We are kicked around from all sides," said a worried Mr Ali.

In Assam, anxiety over outsiders has led to many violent agitations and riots since the 1980s. Over the last four decades, there has been a struggle against immigrant Muslims who, locals claim, came to India for economic benefit and not because of persecution.

 
According to 2011 census data, Assam's Muslim population grew over 4 per cent in a decade, the highest in the country.

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The BJP says the figure reflects Congress patronage to Bangladeshi migrants as part of votebank politics. Before the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the party repeatedly accused the Congress, in power in the state for 15 years, of deliberately allowing Bangladeshi Muslims to enter Assam.

In that election, the BJP won 7 out of 14 seats, its best-ever performance in the state.  For the coming election, the party has forged alliances with crucial regional players known for a hardline stance on immigration.

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Government figures show 1.5 lakh Muslim voters in Assam -- 1 per cent of the total voters. The BJP says the low percentage merely means the government does not want to detect foreigners.

The Congress denies this. A court mandated exercise to identify bona fide Indian citizens in Assam is already on.

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Assam Congress chief Anjan Dutta said, "The BJP uses these issues only during elections. We have always said if anyone is detected as being Bangladeshi he or she should be deported."