Structural Intersections, Hierarchical Citizenship and Criminalization of the Migrant in Assam

The article arises from a study located in the Northeast Indian state of Assam. In it, I revisit the colonial imprints that have produced binary constructions of native and outsider. Based on an investigation of the dialogical relationship between a nativist society and anti-migrant policies and practices of the post-colonial state, I argue that those who lie at the periphery of a native-native dichotomy are criminalized. This dichotomy stems from a brahminical culture and structural intersections of gender, caste, class, religion and ethnicity; the intersections define who is a more legitimate resident than the other, eligible to become an ‘authentic citizen’. The article questions why the Bengali-speaking Muslims or lower caste Hindus and women from these communities become ‘convenient proxies’ for illegally migrated Bangladeshis, and are susceptible to punishment by a caste Assamese state. By presenting accounts of people’s lived realities, the article aims to disrupt the hierarchies of identities and experiences that make citizenship relatively accessible.