Tensions in Assam have escalated following a violent incident in the Dolbagan area, where 15 Bengali-speaking Muslim laborers were brutally attacked by a group of Hindutva men. The attack comes in the wake of recent inflammatory remarks made by Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chief Minister of the BJP-ruled state.

According to Kashmir Media Service, around 20 masked assailants stormed the laborers’ common room in Dolbagan, located in Upper Assam, and severely beat the Muslim labourers. They then asked the workers, originally from the Lower Assam districts of Goalpara and Barpeta, to leave the area within an hour.

A video of the assault, which was later circulated online, shows the laborers being forced to kneel and chant Hindu slogans. The footage also depicts the laborers being threatened with severe consequences if they did not leave immediately.

Rajibul Haque, one of the victims, speaking to Indian news portal, The Wire, described the brutality, stating, ‘They were thrashing us like cattle and hurling verbal abuses targeting our faith and community.’ Haque, who had been working on a construction site for three years, described the attack as both brutal and humiliating. He recounted how the group was given just 30 minutes to leave and had to traverse through forests to find safety.

The incident has intensified scrutiny of Sarma’s inflammatory remarks, leading to an FIR filed by the United Opposition Forum (UOF). The UOF, a coalition of 18 opposition parties, accuses Sarma of inciting religious and racial hatred against the state’s Muslim, particularly Bengali-speaking Muslim, community. They have called for his immediate arrest, warning that his actions could exacerbate communal tensions.

Assam Pradesh Congress Committee President Bhupen Kumar Borah condemned Sarma’s conduct, stating that he was deliberately stoking communal animosity and undermining political decency. ‘Sarma’s most serious offense is his attempt to paint various incidents with a communal brush,’ Borah said. The FIR also underscores Sarma’s controversial statements, which critics argue fuel further unrest.