There was growing discontent among the Assamese in the 1970s. They believed the state wasn't receiving its due from the Centre, despite Congress being at the helm, both in New Delhi and Dispur.
The discontent and fear that the culture, language and people of Assam were at risk soon transformed into an agitation. In 1979, the leaders of the All Assam Students' Union (AASU) took to the streets and demanded the detention and deportation of illegal immigrants, particularly those who continued to enter the state post the formation of Bangladesh (1971).
The Assam Agitation was triggered by the discovery of high numbers of “foreigners” in electoral rolls during the Mangaldoi Lok Sabha by-election 1978.
Six years after the movement began and led to many deaths, the Rajiv Gandhi government signed the Assam Accords in 1985 with AASU. One of the key promises was to free Assam of illegal immigrants who entered the state after March 24, 1971.
The Accord was meant to identify and deport illegal immigrants, protect the identity and rights of Assamese people and prioritise them in jobs and education.
Anyone who came to Assam on or after March 25, 1971, was to be considered a foreigner and their names were supposed to be removed from the electoral rolls.
Fast-forward to 2026, and the problem of illegal immigrants is still one of the most debated and sensitive issues in Assam.
The BJP, despite being in power for a decade, often invokes this issue in election campaigns.
According to AASU president Utpal Sarma and general secretary Samiran Phukan, the pact has not been fully implemented.
"Successive governments at the Centre and state have failed to implement the pact for 40 years. Illegal foreigners were not detected, deported and their names not deleted from the voter lists," the AASU leaders said in a joint statement.
They said that even the routes through which illegal immigrants from Bangladesh entered Assam have not been closed, calling it an "unpardonable sin" by the government.
AASU demands proper implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which is meant to identify legal citizens and exclude illegal immigrants. They want Assam to be excluded from the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) 2019.
The CAA provides Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Parsis who came from Bangladesh, Pakistan, or Afghanistan on or before December 31, 2014, after 5 years of residence. AASU and other groups argue that CAA contradicts the Assam Accord.
With Assam heading for elections on April 9, all eyes will be on the new government to see if it can act on the Assam Accord.
