New Delhi: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma believes that Muslim voters will not choose him as their candidate.
Speaking at Agenda Aaj Tak 2025, Biswa Sarma asserted that ideology, rather than government schemes or financial incentives, drives voting patterns in Assam. Irrespective of how much money is offered in welfare schemes, he will not be able to win over Muslim voters, said the CM.
Biswa Sarma made those comments when asked whether he had any scheme similar to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Mahila Rozgar Yojana, which transfers Rs 10,000 each to 21 lakh women, to attract voters ahead of next year’s Assam Assembly elections.
“Even if I give Rs 1 lakh, a large section of the community would not vote for me,” the BJP leader said.
Asked to specify the community he was talking about, Biswa Sarma replied
, “The ones we call the Miya Musalmans. I was once told that a voter from the Muslim community appreciated my work and was even willing to donate a kidney if I needed it. But he would never vote for me.”
He went on to say that people in Assam vote for an idea, not just benefits.
“I don’t blame anyone. It’s overly simplistic to assume that offering schemes will automatically secure votes. While implementing schemes for the public is essential when in government, believing that this alone will win votes is a miscalculation,” the Assam CM added.
Himanta Sarma warned about a “demographic invasion” in Assam, claiming that other communities could be “wiped out” if the Muslim population exceeds 50 per cent.
Biswa Sarma noted that Assam’s Muslim population, estimated at around 38 per cent in 2021, could rise to 40 per cent by 2027. He was of the opinion that the indigenous Assamese population is facing an existential crisis due to decades of unchecked migration.
Biswa Sarma, however, claimed that he maintains “very good relations with Miya Muslims and women in the state.” He felt that even if Muslim voters support the Congress, his government will still emerge victorious in next year’s Vidhan Sabha polls.