India, Nov. 4 -- Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said eviction drives to clear encroachments will continue across the state, asserting that "illegal Miyas" will not have peace as long as he remains in office. "Evictions will continue. Even today, notices were served in Behali area (in Biswanath district). Illegal Miyas don't have peace till I am the CM," Sarma told reporters after an official function at Jamugurihat.
'Miya' is originally a pejorative term used for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam, and the non-Bengali-speaking people generally identify them as Bangladeshi immigrants. In recent years, activists from the community have started adopting this term as a gesture of defiance. "There will be no peace even if you...