Politicians play on the fear of immigrants in Assam
01 April 2016
The All Assam Students’ Union has been at the forefront of chauvinistic protests against allegedly illegal immigrants since the 1970s.
BIJU BORO / AFP / GETTY IMAGES
The All Assam Students’ Union has been at the forefront of chauvinistic protests against allegedly illegal immigrants since the 1970s.
BIJU BORO / AFP / GETTY IMAGES
ON THE AFTERNOON OF 22 FEBRUARY 2014, Gujarat’s then chief minister, Narendra Modi, strode up to a lectern at a political rally in Silchar, in southern Assam, around 40 kilometres east of the Bangladesh border. Dressed in a peach kurta, a patterned beige stole and a white, gold-bordered turban, Modi resembled an elderly groom more than a prime-ministerial candidate. As he spoke, the crowd of tens of thousands regularly erupted in chants of his name.