Guwahati, April 4: The political war of words in Assam reached a fever pitch on Saturday as Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accused AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi of “weaponising the Miya community” for electoral gains. With the state set to go to the polls on April 9, the Chief Minister also turned his fire toward the Congress, alleging that the national party “brought Owaisi” into the state’s political fray to aggressively mobilize minority voters and manipulate the election arithmetic.
The exchange marks the latest escalation in a volatile series of barbs between the Chief Minister and the Hyderabad MP over the “Miya” community, a term for Bengali-origin Muslims that has transitioned from a pejorative to a label of defiance. The confrontation was ignited by Sarma’s previous campaign rhetoric, in which he claimed the government had “broken the hands and legs” of the community and vowed to “break their backbone” in a second term to prevent them from living “peacefully” in the state.
Responding to these threats, Owaisi reminded the Chief Minister of the 150-year history of Muslims in Assam, asserting that the community would not be intimidated by the ruling BJP-led NDA alliance. Challenging the Chief Minister to name any location in the state where the community was being targeted, Owaisi declared that he and AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal would personally visit those areas to ensure the security of the people.
The strategic entry of Owaisi into the Assam campaign has significantly disrupted traditional voting patterns. Although the AIMIM has not fielded its own candidates, its vocal support for the AIUDF is widely seen as an attempt to consolidate the minority vote. This move has drawn sharp criticism from the Congress, which has labeled the AIMIM as the “B-team” of the BJP, accusing it of acting as a “vote-cutter” designed to divide anti-incumbency sentiment.
Owaisi has dismissed these allegations, maintaining that his goal is to empower a strong, independent Muslim leadership that can exert influence over Assam’s next cabinet. As the April 9 deadline approaches, the high-stakes battle for the Miya vote has become a central pivot of the election, with both the ruling alliance and the opposition trading accusations of communal polarization and political desperation.
