‘Presence of infiltrators was a big security threat’: Shah lays foundation stone of Assam Police campus at 2024 eviction site

“Because of the presence of infiltrators here, there was a big threat to security in Guwahati, Assam and India. Right by here, a national expressway is going to pass, which is going to be the central nerve for Assam’s industrial highway. This settlement of infiltrators on this expressway’s mouth used to be a big challenge for Assam’s progress,” he added.

Shah said it was a matter of great happiness to him that in a place that once posed a challenge to security, the 10th battalion of Assam Police, which ends security challenges, is being established.

Over the course of multiple visits and addresses in Assam in the last few months, Shah has referred to the thousands of people – mostly Bengali-origin Muslims – who have been evicted from forest lands, grazing lands and other government lands in the state.

Shah claimed that seven of Assam’s districts are “filled with infiltrators.”

“In the 20 years of Congress rule, in many districts, these seven districts, the Hindu population, which was 38 lakh, reduced and became 36 lakh and the districts were completely filled with infiltrators. Dhubri, Barpeta, Darrang, Morigaon, Bongaigaon, Nagaon and Goalpara, those are also ours. Should they be freed of infiltrators or not?” he asked. “I challenge the Congress to even mention a promise in its manifesto that it will remove infiltrators. Let Rahul Gandhi say once that we will remove infiltrators. They do not have the courage to say it because these infiltrators are their votebanks,” Shah added.

Earlier in the day, Shah participated in the 87th Raising Day celebrations of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Guwahati. This is the first time that this parade is being conducted in a location in North East India.

Addressing the event, Shah said that 11-12 years ago, the country had three major hotspots — Jammu and Kashmir, Left-Wing Extremism-affected areas, and the Northeast — which had become “sores” for the nation’s internal security.

“Once known for scenes of bombings, bullets, blockades and destruction, these three areas are part of the country’s development today. By becoming a growth engine, they are working to drive the development of the entire country,” he said, saying that this would not have been possible without the CRPF.

Shah said that 700 CRPF personnel have been killed in the North East, 780 in Naxalism-affected areas and 540 in Jammu and Kashmir. “Without these sacrifices, it would have been impossible to take these three hotspots on the path of development today,” he added.