Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Blaming Muslims For Rise In Prices Of Veggies Is Bizarre

By Sushil Kutty

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma speaks in a different tongue from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s. On the one hand, Modi goes out of his way to woo Muslims with targeted welfare schemes; on the other, the Assam Chief Minister makes it a daily habit to insult Muslims wherever and whenever he gets an opportunity. In the latest instance, Sarma accused the “Miya Muslim community” for being responsible for the rise in vegetable prices in the state, drawing criticism from Logical Indians across the spectrum.

How a particular community can be behind price rise is beyond most people’s understanding but it shouldn’t surprise if it is Himanta Biswa Sarma stating the nonsense. Sarma is getting a lot of flak for the idiotic claim but the Chief Minister of Assam has a fan following which hangs on to his every word.

Himanta Biswa Sarma is a Hindutva icon and second only Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in popularity in the rightwing ecosystem with an envious record of targeting Muslims and hitting out at them for real and imaginary slights. But Himanta Biswa Sarma should be congratulated for confessing that price rise and inflation are a reality and not made up, as many in the BJP claim.

Sarma also makes up for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence. At the same time, Sarma is known for his screw-ups. He was said to be one of two-three persons responsible for the despicable events in Manipur over the last nearly three months. Manipur doesn’t have too many Muslims to make a difference otherwise the Assam Chief Minister would have promptly blamed “Miyas” for the disturbances in the state.

But Muslims resident in Assam are sitting ducks. If it isn’t rising vegetable prices, it was the rise of Islamic radicalization of madrasas, against which Biswa Sarma ordered a demolition drive. In fact, madrasas are the favourite targets of the Assam Chief Minister who claims it is his sworn duty to modernize them and give forever glum Muslims reason to celebrate.

Sarma’s vegetable price rise claim has angered the Muslim community. AIUDF Chief Badruddin Ajmal, who is the Dhubri MP, has hit out at Sarma’s comment, stating that with the “Miya Muslims” comment, the Assam Chief Minister was “trying to separate Assamese Muslims from the youth. He should not have said this. I did not like this…he is creating a division between Muslims and the Assamese people. If something happens, the government and CM Sarma will be responsible”.

Sarma’s “Miya Muslims” remark somehow does not go with the BJP’s newfound affection for Pasmanda Muslims. It is like the saffron party has different policies for Muslims in different states. Whereas Uttar Pradesh Muslims are given the benefit of doubt and red carpet treatment, those of West Bengal and Assam are looked down with disdain.

Similarly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi traces affinity with Bohra Muslims going back four generations, but there is no love lost for Sunni Ashraf Muslims. The Modi government’s largesse, paid for by taxpayer money – the targeted ‘labarthi’ schemes and free rations – are largely for the Pasmanda Muslim only, Assam’s “Miya Muslims” are conspicuously left out to fend for themselves.

No wonder there are loads of Muslims who believe there are “people in this state who will blame Miya Muslims if their buffalo does not give milk, if their hen does not lay eggs!” Somehow, it doesn’t gel that the anti-Muslim statements of BJP leaders are at the end of the day contributing to “Modiji” getting flak from all over the world for his government’s treatment of Muslims.

People are still wondering how “Miya Muslims” should be held accountable for rising prices of vegetables. Maybe the secret is in Sarma’s subsequent statement that “the prices of vegetables would not be so high had the Assamese people sold them” and not the “Miya vendors.” The “Miya” are a community of Muslims of Assam and Sarma seems to be hinting that the majority of Assam’s vegetable vendors are from the “Miya community”.

With that Sarma appears to be driving a wedge between “Assamese people” and the  “Miya community”. Notably, the Chief Minister spoke after Ajmal challenged Assamese youth to compete with the Miya in farming. But Ajmal’s challenge was in a friendly tone: “If Assamese youth can compete with people of our ‘Miya’ community in farming, I welcome them. They will have to put forth a lot of effort. Will they, though? I don’t think so.”

To nobody’s surprise, Sarma reacted and not the “Assamese youth”. The Chief Minister took it as a challenge to himself. The Miya are Bengali-speaking and are accused of migrating from Bangladesh, which is perfect alibi to blaming them for price rise and everything else wrong under the sun! (IPA Service)

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