Assam Tribunals Declare 36,000 Foreigners With Few Deportations

Guwahati: Foreigners Tribunals in Assam have tagged 36,358 people as illegal migrants since 2021. Just 196 of them left the country. Border Protection and Development Minister Atul Bora shared the data in the state assembly on July 8.

The numbers show a steady flow of rulings. Tribunals marked 7,151 people in 2021, 9,028 in 2022, 6,859 in 2023, 6,178 in 2024, 5,106 in 2025, and 2,036 through early 2026. Only these tribunals hold the legal power to rule on citizenship status.

The findings sparked a fight on the floor. Raijor Dal MLA Akhil Gogoi demanded the total count of illegal foreigners currently living in the state. Bora admitted the government lacks that specific data. Gogoi pushed back hard on the lack of information, asking, "why the Assembly should accept the minister's statements in the absence of such information."

The Assam Accord sets the rules here. It calls for finding and removing those who arrived after March 25, 1971. Anyone hit with an adverse ruling can take their case to higher courts.