In the wake of the trouble in Assam, and the exodus of North East people from different parts of the country, the Sangh members saw a chance of lashing out against the Islamic community and made the illegal immigrants issue a target to vent their animosity. In Bangalore after the threat to residence belonging to the North East Community, it was in fact Muslim groups which came forward and gave assurances and reassurances to the people of North East India residing there. How many times did the media highlight this?

I have always been maintaining that the problem in the Bodo areas is due to the land factor and economies. In the past, there have been threats against both the Assamese Hindu and the Bengali Hindu whenever the local people felt that their rights were endangered. Then there were attacks against the Adivasis. It is land encroachment which is at the helm and crux of matters. It so happens that in the present crisis the wrath is against the Bangladeshi immigrants and the lesser we make it as an ethnic religious matter the better it is for our understanding of certain historical issues in Assam which has impacted upon the various communities living there.

In fact, the historic Assam movement was against the ouster of the Bangladeshi immigrants, be it Hindus or Muslims and the student leaders spearheading the movement did not make the religious factor a contentious issue, but clearly stated that they were against illegal migration, irrespective of religion and community. The same holds true now and the fact that it is given and anti-Muslim stance is capitalized by rightist elements such as the Bajrang Dal and the RSS.

We forget facts like the Assamese Muslims who are been settled in Assam for generations or for that matter the Bengali Muslims in West Bengal. Quite a few of domestic workers who come to Assam or for that matter even New Delhi to eke out a living are Bengali Muslims from West Bengal. We must resist the efforts of inimical forces bent on dividing Hindus and Muslims at all cost. The historical sense of Islamic presence in the country cannot be wished away and applying blinkers to history is to tamper with it and distort certain historical essentials. The trouble in the Bodo areas of Assam has to be seen against the backdrop of socio-economic causes, the fight for possession of wealth and land snatching. It is the issue of the common man who is a survivalist whether he is Hindu, Muslim or Christian.

This new found love of the Sangh Parivar for the people of North East India has to be taken with more than a pinch of salt. It has to be viewed with skepticism because there is a hidden agenda in it.