Guwahati, Dec. 27 -- Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday raised concerns over what he described as a major demographic shift in the state, alleging that years of "appeasement politics" by the Congress had led to the emergence of a "new civilisation" that threatens Assam's social and cultural fabric.

Speaking at the Assam State BJP Executive Meeting held at Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati, Sarma cited census data to underline his claims. He said that as per the 2011 Census, Muslims constituted around 34 per cent of Assam's population.

"If we exclude about three per cent Assamese Muslims from this figure, the Bangladeshi-origin Muslim population stood at around 31 per cent at that time," he said.

Pointing out...