Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday, 7 July 2026, publicly defended the state police's use of return fire during anti-drug operations, stating that traffickers frequently open fire on officers and that the police act in self-defence. He credited Union Home Minister Amit Shah for leading a major campaign against narcotics in the state.

Context

Posting in Hindi on X, CM Sarma wrote: 'ड्रग्स कारोबार के दलाल अक्सर असम पुलिस पर गोली चलाते हैं। अपनी आत्मरक्षा के लिए पुलिस भी return फायर करती है' — 'Drug trade brokers frequently fire upon Assam Police. In self-defence, the police also return fire.' He added that under the leadership of Home Minister Amit Shah, Assam has launched a major campaign against drugs, tagging the effort #AssamAgainstDrugs.

The statement comes amid sustained police encounters with drug networks across the state. Assam sits on a critical narcotics transit corridor linking Myanmar and Bangladesh — both gateways to supply chains originating in the Golden Triangle region of Southeast Asia.

Policy Backdrop

Since 2016, the Ministry of Home Affairs under Amit Shah has directed coordinated anti-narcotics drives across North-East states through the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and state police forces. Assam, governed by the BJP and a key member of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) convenored by CM Sarma himself, has been a central theatre of this enforcement push.

The approach combines police encounters, large-scale seizures, and public awareness campaigns — a pattern mirrored in neighbouring Manipur and Mizoram. CM Sarma's post fits within a broader political messaging strategy that frames police encounters as defensive, not offensive, actions.

Stakeholders and Impact

Assam Police officers are the most immediate stakeholders, operating in conditions where armed resistance from traffickers is cited as routine. The Chief Minister's statement serves as institutional cover and public acknowledgement of the risks officers face in the field.

For Assam's youth — a demographic the state government has repeatedly identified as most vulnerable to drug abuse — the campaign represents an attempt to disrupt supply networks at the source. Civil liberties observers, however, have previously raised questions about the accountability framework around police encounter killings in the state, a debate the post is likely to reignite.

What's Next

The next quarterly review of Assam's anti-narcotics task force and any joint MHA-NCB operation announcements for the North-East will be closely watched. A formal escalation of the #AssamAgainstDrugs campaign — potentially involving central paramilitary support or inter-state coordination — remains a possibility given the Home Minister's direct association with the drive.

As long as Assam remains a key narcotics transit point, the tension between aggressive enforcement and due-process scrutiny will define the political and legal contours of the state's anti-drug strategy.