A massive eviction drive was carried out on Tuesday in Assam’s Dhubri district to clear land for a proposed thermal power project, triggering sharp criticism from the Opposition Raijor Dal, which called the exercise “illegal and unconstitutional”.

The Dhubri district administration deployed around 50 excavators and bulldozers, along with 1,200 security personnel, to clear approximately 3,500 bighas of government land across three villages — Charuwabakhra, Santoshpur and Chirakuta — under Chapor circle, affecting nearly 1,400 families, mostly Bengali-speaking Muslims. The affected sites are located 55km from Dhubri town.

Officials said the cleared land would be handed over to Assam Power Development Corporation Limited (APDCL), which plans to float tenders to rope in private players for the thermal power project. While the tendering process has not yet begun, locals and activists have alleged that the land is likely to be leased to the Adani Group.

The remnants of a house demolished on Tuesday

The eviction drive began at 6.30am. Though nearly 90 per cent of the families vacated their homes voluntarily ahead of the drive, tensions flared at Charuwabakhra, where residents damaged two excavators and pelted stones. Police eventually resorted to lathicharge to bring the situation under control.

According to an official, locals were enraged when one of the excavator drivers was seen smirking during the demolition. “A few individuals fainted seeing their houses destroyed. That pushed a section of villagers to react violently,” he said. A few people suffered injuries, but none required hospitalisation.

The local administration claimed the process was “by and large peaceful” and completed around 6pm. Officials said ex gratia payments had been disbursed to 400 families, while 197 land patta holders would receive compensation following assessments by the public works department. The eviction process began in mid-April, followed by the disposal of claims and objections. Final notices were issued last week, giving encroachers three days to vacate voluntarily by Monday. Officials added that there was no court stay on the operation.

Opposition leader and Raijor Dal president Akhil Gogoi, who attempted to visit the affected area but was briefly detained, condemned the eviction as an attack on minorities. “It is unconstitutional and illegal. There are three existing stay orders from Gauhati High Court,” he claimed. The district administration denied these claims, stating no such orders were in effect.

Gogoi also alleged that neither the local AIUDF MLA nor the Congress MP from Dhubri had visited or offered assistance to the affected families. “They’ve been living here for over 40 years. Some people sought more time, others were unhappy with the compensation. And some haven’t received anything yet,” said a resident.

Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma defended the operation, saying 90 per cent of the people had left willingly. He reiterated that similar eviction drives would continue to reclaim government and ecologically sensitive land.

The ruling BJP extended its support to the government, calling the drive necessary for protecting the identity and land of indigenous Assamese people. In a statement, the party accused the previous Congress regime of settling “illegal immigrants from Bangladesh” in the area for vote-bank politics.

Evictions have also been carried out recently in Nalbari, Lakhimpur, Goalpara and Kamrup Metro districts. Despite political backlash, the government indicated that the eviction policy would continue “in the interest of long-term public welfare and environmental protection”.

Congress’s Dhubri MP, Rakibul Hussain, said the eviction was “inhumane and unconstitutional” and that “the government was apparently run according to Adani”.

The eviction was carried out despite a June 24 court stay order, and the next hearing was scheduled for July 22, Hussain said.