Tezpur: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said the state government’s proposed bill to ban polygamy is not aimed at targeting ‘Miyas’, adding that the practice exists among people of other religions as well.

He maintained that the practice of marrying multiple women is more prevalent among Miyas.

“In checking polygamy, we are not targeting Miyas. People of other religions also do it,” Sarma told reporters on sidelines of a programme at Rangapara in Sonitpur district.

‘Miya’ is originally a pejorative term used for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam, and the non-Bengali-speaking people generally identify them as Bangladeshi immigrants.

Sarma maintained that though polygamy is more prevalent among Miyas, “it cannot be said that it does not happen among Hindus”.

The stat

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