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The home minister also sought to provide the historical context for the government’s approach, particularly its controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019
Shah defined refugees as those belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian communities who fled persecution. File pic/PTI
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday ignited a fresh debate on demography and national security, asserting that the rise in the Muslim population in India is primarily due to “infiltration from Pakistan and Bangladesh”, rather than natural growth rates. Speaking at the Jagran Sahitya Srijan Samman event in New Delhi, Shah sharply differentiated between genuine refugees and illegal migrants, arguing that the former, particularly persecuted Hindu minorities, have a moral and constitutional right to shelter on Indian soil.
Citing national census data from 1951 to 2011, Shah underpinned his claim with statistics showing a notable demographic shift. He pointed out that the share of the Hindu population in India declined from approximately 84% in 1951 to about 79% in 2011, while the share of the Muslim population increased from 9.8% to 14.2%. Crucially, he attributed the Muslim population’s higher decadal growth rate of 24.6% (as per 2011 figures) not to fertility, but to the influx of undocumented individuals. He highlighted border regions, including districts in West Bengal, where he claimed the Muslim growth rate had surged past 40% and, in some cases, up to 70%, as undeniable evidence of large-scale infiltration.
The Home Minister sought to provide the historical context for the government’s approach, particularly its controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019. He emphasised that the religious Partition of 1947 placed a moral obligation on India to protect the persecuted minorities left behind in the newly formed Islamic states. He backed this point by citing the dramatic decline of minority populations in neighbouring countries: the Hindu population in Pakistan reportedly fell from 13% in 1951 to less than 2% today, and in Bangladesh, it dropped from 22% to below 8%.
“Jitna mera adhikar iss desh ki mitti par hai, utna hi adhikar Pakistan aur Bangladesh ke Hinduon ka iss desh ki mitti par hai,” Shah asserted, meaning the Hindus of Pakistan and Bangladesh have the same right to Indian soil as him.
He defined refugees as those belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian communities who fled persecution, making a case that the CAA is a policy correcting a “historical mistake” by granting them citizenship. In contrast, he labelled infiltrators as those entering illegally for purely economic or other reasons, stressing that “India is not a Dharamshala” and will follow a firm “Detect, Delete, and Deport” policy to safeguard the national register of citizens and prevent illegal entrants from compromising democracy by getting onto voter rolls. Shah’s comments effectively framed the debate as a non-negotiable national security and demographic preservation issue.
The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d…Read More
The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d… Read More
October 11, 2025, 00:24 IST
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