4 min readGuwahatiMar 31, 2026 05:06 PM IST
First published on: Mar 31, 2026 at 04:42 PM IST
The implementation of a Uniform Civil Code in Assam, laws against “land jihad” and “love jihad”, more evictions, more “pushbacks” of declared foreigners, and a ramp-up of existing welfare schemes, including increasing the amount transferred under the government’s monthly financial assistance scheme for women from Rs 1,250 to Rs 3,000. These are among the BJP’s key poll promises for the April 9 Assembly elections. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the party’s manifesto in Guwahati on Tuesday.
Announcing the key points in the manifesto, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the party promises to use the Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950 — a long defunct law that the government revived last year to “pushback” people declared foreigners by the state’s Foreigners Tribunal into Bangladesh by bypassing diplomatic processes — “everyday to send back Bangladeshis from Assam”. He also said the party promises to continue its mass eviction campaigns, in which mostly Bengali-origin Muslim families have been affected, declaring “we will free every inch of land is with Bangladeshi illegal immigrants”.
The poll manifesto also lists “working towards the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code” — excluding tribal communities and parts of the state protected under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution — as “an effective act to end the menace of Love Jihad” and “firm measures to tackle the menace of land jihad,” all three of which are things that Sarma has repeatedly declared during his current term as CM.
It promises an investment of Rs. 18,000 crore “to make Assam flood-free through a River Rejuvenation Mission, developing a National Waterway-2, and train volunteers for embankment monitoring.
The manifesto also includes a significant ramping up of various popular welfare measures undertaken by the government in its current term.
Last year, the government had launched monthly subsidised rations of masoor dal, sugar and salt for ration card holders in the state, in addition to subsidised rice. The manifesto promises including mustard oil to this, as well as “free ration to the poorest of poor families.”
It also promises increasing monthly assistance under its flagship Orunodoi scheme – a monthly DBT to women beneficiaries from “economically weaker sections” – from Rs. 1250 to Rs. 3000, and increasing coverage under it to another 15 lakh households.
It also includes key promises to tea worker communities in the state, including an increase in their wages to Rs. 500 per day – the current wage in the Brahmaputra valley is Rs 250 per day, and a hike of Rs 30 will be effective from April 1. One of the government’s key announcements this term has been the ownership of land in their labour lines for tea garden workers through land pattas. Promising the full implementation of this, the party has also promised Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana houses for eligible families to build houses on these lands.
The other key promises include appointments to two lakh more government jobs and a “One District, One University” initiative promising “a comprehensive coverage of medical and engineering colleges in each district to enhance quality higher education in Assam.
