Authorities in Assam carried out a large-scale eviction exercise in Sonitpur district earlier this week, demolishing over 1,200 homes occupied by Bengali Muslim families, officials confirmed.
The two-day operation, conducted on January 5 and 6, targeted settlements in and around the Burhachapori Wildlife Sanctuary as part of the state government’s ongoing effort to remove what it has termed unauthorised occupation of protected forest land.
District authorities said the residents had constructed houses and cultivated agricultural land within notified forest boundaries. While several families vacated the area ahead of the drive, others stayed on, citing extreme winter conditions and urging officials to allow time for harvesting standing crops.
The administration, however, went ahead with the operation. Sonitpur District Commissioner Ananda Kumar Das said the land in question fell within forest limits and that continued habitation could not be permitted under existing laws.
The latest eviction follows a similar exercise in February this year, when more than 2,000 hectares were cleared from the sanctuary and adjoining areas.
According to official estimates, the drive sought to reclaim nearly 650 hectares within the sanctuary. Demolitions were reported across multiple villages under the Tezpur Sadar and Dhekiajuli revenue circles, including Jamuktol, Arimari, Siyalichar, Baghetapu, Galatidubi, Lathimari, Kundulichar, Purba Dubramari and Batulichar. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Monday that the state has recovered close to 1.5 lakh bighas of land through such operations.
Those displaced have contested the government’s claims, saying their families had lived in the area for decades. Many argue that their ancestors settled there after being forced to relocate due to repeated flooding and erosion caused by the Brahmaputra river.
Eviction drives in the state have occasionally triggered violence. In July, police firing during clashes at an eviction site in Goalpara district left one person dead and several others injured.
