In India’s northeastern state of Assam, a brutal campaign of displacement is underway. Thousands of families, mostly Bengali-origin Muslims, have been stripped of their homes, their communities and their place in the only country they have ever known. Yet, the dire humanitarian crisis has barely received attention beyond India’s borders.
Since early June, the state government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party has forcibly evicted nearly 6,000 Bengali-origin Muslim families, displacing men, women and children. Bulldozers have flattened homes, mosques and small businesses. Entire neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble, leaving tens of thousands homeless and huddled under tarpaulin sheets in the monsoon rains. On July 17, during an eviction drive, local police opened fire on protesters, killing a 19-year-old Muslim youth and injuring several others.
Read Full Article »