Upcoming Jharkhand assembly polls crucial for protecting tribals, Hindus: Himanta

Ranchi: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday said that the upcoming Jharkhand assembly elections are crucial for protecting tribals and Hindus, as the "demography of the state is changing due to Bangladeshi infiltration".

Sarma, who is also the BJP's election co-incharge for Jharkhand, was addressing party workers during the extended executive committee meeting of the party in Ranchi's Prabhat Tara Ground.

"After Assam and West Bengal, Bangladeshi infiltrators' next target is Jharkhand, which is a matter of concern. There are many districts in the state where Muslim infiltrators' population has reached up to 30 per cent. So, the upcoming assembly elections are crucial for protecting tribals and Hindus in the state," Sarma said.

He claimed that the Muslim population in Assam has reached 40 per cent now.

"Of these 40 per cent, the population of indigenous Muslims, whom we consider Assamese, is only 4 per cent, while 36 per cent of the population is of infiltrators. If the Muslim population in Assam grows in this way, Assam will be a Muslim-majority state by 2041," he said.

Sarma said that the Muslim population in neighbouring West Bengal has reached 26 per cent.

"It is growing at the rate of 29 per cent every 10 years. After Assam, West Bengal, Kerala and Jammu and Kashmir, the Muslim population is increasing swiftly in Jharkhand," he said.

The infiltrators are coming to Jharkhand and marrying tribal girls with only aim to grab their lands, he said.

"The Jharkhand CM is himself a tribal but he doesn't take any action against infiltrators to save tribals," Sarma alleged.

He alleged that in Jharkhand, permission is given for Muharram processions but not for Ram Navami rallies.

During recent Muharram processions, the minority community "created an uproar" in at least 12 places including Barkagaon, Saraikela, Jharia, Dhanbad, Pakur, Dumka, Ramgarh and Jamshedpur, he alleged.

"In many places, Palestinian flags were hoisted but the Hemant Soren-led government did not take any action," he said.

"The Congress and JMM speak about the Constitution. Does the Constitution allow hoisting of Palestinian flags? When the BJP forms the government in Jharkhand, strict action will be taken against those who had hoisted Palestinian flags," Sarma said.

He alleged that if the JMM-led government returned to power, more Palestinian flags would be seen and infiltration would rise, Ram Navami processions would be stopped, youths would not get jobs and atrocities on women would rise.

"The current government has cheated the youths by promising them five lakh jobs. The government had also claimed that if jobs were not provided, they (youths) would be given unemployment allowances. But, they (state government) did not give either jobs or unemployment allowances to the youths," Sarma said.

He exuded confidence that the BJP would form the next government in Jharkhand.

"We won nine Lok Sabha seats in the state and took a lead in over 51 assembly segments. To form a government in Jharkhand, only 42 seats are required," he said.

Of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, the BJP won eight seats, while its ally AJSU party one. The ruling JMM won three seats and the Congress two in the parliamentary polls.