India’s BJP leader orders shoot-to-kill during Hindu festival in Muslim-majority district

NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — In India’s northeastern state of Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma — a hardline Hindu nationalist and close ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi — has imposed a “shoot-to-kill” order in the Muslim-majority district of Dhubri during the Hindu festival of Durga Puja.

According to Clarion India the directive, in effect from September 28 to October 2 during nighttime hours, authorizes police to open fire without warning. Sarma, a senior figure in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), defended the order as a security step.

But rights advocates and political analysts said that the move is an unmistakable attempt to weaponize religion and fuel fear before elections.

Durga Puja, one of Hinduism’s most important annual festivals, has long been celebrated peacefully in Assam. Community leaders insist there has never been a precedent for violence requiring such extreme policing. “When there was never any dispute in the past, why impose such a draconian order now?” asked Guwahati-based lawyer Ilyas Ahmed. He warned the directive would “create fear and distrust” among ordinary citizens.

Muslim organizations, including the Ittehad Front, called the order unjust and provocative. Hindu representatives in Dhubri echoed the concerns, warning that the government was weaponizing security for political ends. 

Farmer union leader Mukul Bada said the directive was “an attempt to pit Hindus and Muslims against each other before the 2026 elections.”

Residents told reporters that while security checks are normal during major festivals, granting shoot-to-kill powers undermines Assam’s centuries-old ethos of interfaith harmony. “We have lived together for generations, celebrating festivals peacefully. Such orders only create suspicion between neighbors who have always respected each other,” one resident said.

Analysts note that Assam, located along India’s border with Bangladesh, has long been used as a testing ground for Hindu nationalist policies, from controversial citizenship laws to heavy-handed policing. They argue that normalizing “shoot-to-kill” powers sets a dangerous precedent that disproportionately targets Muslims while emboldening far-right politics.

Civil society groups have demanded the immediate withdrawal of the directive and called for dialogue with community representatives. 

Observers warn that Sarma’s order risks destabilizing Assam and further eroding India’s fragile communal harmony, reflecting what they see as a broader pattern of the BJP using religion as a political weapon.