A representation has been submitted to the Prime Minister, the Union Home Minister, the Chairman and members of the National Commission on Demographic Change, and the General Secretary (Organisation) of the BJP, expressing concern over the implications of the Assam Land Revenue Regulation Amendment, 2026.
The representation, submitted by advocate Upamanyu Hazarika, alleges that the amendment’s definition of “original inhabitant” could have significant demographic, legal and administrative consequences in Assam.
According to the representation, the new definition groups indigenous communities and persons of Bangladesh or East Bengal origin under the same category. It argues that the criteria for being recognized as an “original inhabitant” require three generations of continuous residence in a particular area, with each generation considered to have completed 25 years of continuous residence.
Hazarika contends that, under this definition, a three-generation family that migrated from Bangladesh in 1979 could qualify as “original inhabitants” by January 1, 2006. He claims this could effectively shift the cut-off period relating to migration issues from 1971 to 1979.
The representation further argues that the amendment may have implications for the National Register of Citizens (NRC) process. It notes that the term “original inhabitant” is also used in rules framed under the Citizenship Act for the NRC, where individuals falling under this category are subject to a more liberal verification procedure. The memorandum refers to investigations conducted in 2021 by district authorities in Nagaon and Kamrup, which allegedly found that several persons of Bangladeshi origin had been marked as “original inhabitants” and included in the NRC despite lacking adequate documentation.
It also cites a report dated May 8, 2021, by the State Coordinator of NRC, claiming that approximately 25 lakh people were included in the NRC with inadequate documents.
The representation additionally highlights the issue of encroachment on Satra lands. Referring to Assam Government data, it states that 15,288 bighas, or nearly 5,000 acres, of Satra land remain under encroachment. It argues that despite the BJP’s promise to remove such encroachments and its three consecutive electoral victories, the overall situation has seen little change.
Hazarika points out that the Assam Land Grabbing Act, 2010, already provides legal provisions to deal with land encroachment, with penalties including imprisonment of up to five years. He argues that instead of utilizing these provisions, the government has enacted legislation that provides protection to encroachers.
The representation concludes by stating that if the government is genuinely committed to protecting Satra lands, the definition of “original inhabitant” should be revised with a cut-off year of 1901, before the large-scale migration from East Bengal, which it identifies as the primary source of encroachment on Satra lands.
