Issues of Migration and Ethnic Clash in Bodoland: A Critical Analysis

The issue of Bangladeshi illegal migration has troubled the state of Assam for decades. The lack of authentic data on illegal migrant flows only adds to the discomfort. The illegal Bangladeshi migrants issue tends to dominate the political, economic and social discourses in Assam. The lack of data on migration adds to a sense of being „under siege‟ by outsiders as no one is sure as to the number of migrants visibly infiltrating all walks of life in Assam. The recent disturbances in Kokrajhar and Dhubri districts of Assam have once again brought the issue of ethnic clash between Muslim and Bodo communities. There is no evidence to suggest that the latest violence is a direct consequence of illegal immigration. The clash between Muslims and Bodos is often misinterpreted as a clash between illegal Bangladeshis and indigenous people. This clash is due to the political and communal conspiracy created by some fundamentalists and political leaders to gain their political mileage. As a consequence, a large number of innocent men, women and children lost their lives. This has certainly pushed back the development issues of the state and destroyed the fraternity between the two communities. This paper will try to examine that the recent clashes in Kokrajhar and Dhubri districts are not due to the problem of migration but the fears of losing land and identities connected with land.