Assam polls: 5 key issues set to headline campaign rhetoric

With the schedule for the Assam assembly elections now out, a host of issues are likely to dominate the campaign rhetoric of political parties in the run-up to the polls. Here are five major ones.

For decades, immigration has remained a central issue in Assam, sparking the historic Assam agitation and culminating in the Assam Accord. The BJP-led government asserts that it has taken measures to implement the Accord’s provisions, while the Opposition is expected to emphasize what they see as unfulfilled promises—particularly the lack of constitutional, legislative, and administrative safeguards to preserve the cultural, social, and linguistic identity of indigenous Assamese communities.

Opposition parties are also likely to spotlight the issue of infiltration, accusing Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of targeting genuine Indian citizens who, they claim, are being “harassed” under the pretext of repelling immigrants from Bangladesh. The Congress and its allies plan to raise this concern prominently in constituencies with a Muslim-majority electorate.

Two major pillars of the immigration debate—the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)—are expected to dominate campaign narratives. The ruling party maintains that opposition to the CAA was misplaced, arguing that only a small number of Hindus from Bangladesh have sought citizenship under its provisions.

The state government’s drive to evict alleged encroachers—many of whom belong to the Muslim community—is set to become a major flashpoint for both the ruling and opposition parties. The ruling alliance will argue that it has reclaimed forest, satra, temple, and other government lands from illegal occupation. In contrast, the opposition will frame the policy as a “serious humanitarian crisis,” pointing to the demolition of homes that has left families displaced, forced to live on the streets, and stripped not only of shelter but also of their livelihoods.

The crackdown on child marriage, which has resulted in numerous arrests and prosecutions under the POCSO Act, is expected to be another major issue in the upcoming elections. The ruling alliance will present it as a decisive move to eliminate a deep-rooted social evil, while the opposition is likely to accuse the government of once again “targeting the Muslim community” in the state.

The Assam government is expected to showcase its major development initiatives, particularly infrastructure projects in roads, railways, new airports, waterways, the Tata semiconductor plant, and a range of agreements signed during the second edition of the Advantage Assam business summit. The opposition, however, will argue that such progress has been concentrated in select areas and has come at the expense of indigenous communities, whose lands were allegedly acquired for these projects.

Welfare schemes for women will also be a central theme, with the BJP and its allies highlighting monthly financial support of Rs 1,250, programmes for women entrepreneurs, and health-related initiatives—especially significant given that women make up nearly half of the electorate. The opposition’s counterpoint will be that crimes against women remain high and that the distribution of benefits has been uneven.

The ruling alliance will further emphasize its recruitment drive across government departments, which has resulted in over 1.6 lakh youth appointments. It will also seek to consolidate support from tea garden workers—a sizeable vote bank that traditionally backed the Congress but shifted allegiance to the BJP in 2016—by underscoring the benefits extended to this community.

Another headline-grabbing issue was the death of popular singer Zubeen Garg in Singapore in September 2025, followed by widespread demands for justice against those accused of his alleged murder. The opposition parties are expected to allege that the BJP government has shown little interest in securing justice for the singer, while the ruling side will emphasize that it set up a Special Investigation Team, arrested the accused, and that the matter is currently before the court.