The fact-finding report states: "Following the incident, Assam's Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma alleged that only 60 families had to be evicted, but 10,000 people swarmed to the site to put up a resistance. The number was disputed not just by the peasants but also by government authorities. According to an FIR filed by Olindita Gogoi, APS, at the Sipajhar police station, 2,000-2,500 persons were present at the demonstration site. The exact number has been recorded in the primary charge sheet submitted by the same officer to the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Darrang, on September 27, 2021.
Meanwhile, locals who took part in the protest told the team that there were not more than 1,000 people at the site. The Chief Minister further claimed that Dhalpur has barely 300 people. However, the fact-finding team discovered that in 1991, Dhalpur village was separated into three distinct villages: Dhalpur No 1, Dhalpur No 2, and Dhalpur No 3. According to the 1991 Census of India report, Dhalpur No 1, Dhalpur No 2, and Dhalpur, No 3 were 867, 1,151, and 959 persons. Also, according to the 2011 Census of India report, Dhalpur No 1 has a population of 2,514, Dhalpur No 2 has a population of 278 people, and Dhalpur No 3 has a population of 6,115 people. As a result, the chief minister's claim that Dhalpur has 300 people is false."
Responding to the allegation that the protest demonstration at Dhalpur was not of the people of Dhalpur; instead, it was organized by outsiders with a political conspiracy. The report states, "On September 22, 2021, more than 600 notices were served to the residents of Dhalpur No 2 and Dhalpur No 3 from 10 pm that day to 9 am the next day. The scheduled time for eviction was 10 am. on September 23, 2021. The villagers were unnerved, not knowing how to dismantle or shift their houses in such a short time. Furthermore, the villagers were terrified, unable to find a place to live with their families because there was no property available. They were not shown an alternate location for a temporary settlement, like the folks who were evicted on September 20 were. As a result, they decided to mount a protest, seeking more time to vacate and an appeal to demarcate an area where they would dwell for the time being until an alternative rehabilitation was offered."
According to the report, All Assam Minority Student Union (AAMSU) leader Joyful Abedin, a local resident who was involved in the protest said, “It was our moral duty to be present when people were resolved to stage a demonstration. Around 10 am, the demonstration began. A meeting between the protesting villagers and the district administration was also convened, with the latter sticking to its position that no further time for eviction would be provided. The Darrang district deputy commissioner said she would alert higher government officials about land allotment to evicted persons for rehabilitation. We proceeded to Bhetibazaar, about 2 kilometers from the demonstration location after the demonstration was over and most of the people had left. We heard shouts and cries from the spot where the eviction drive was to take place as soon as we arrived. We spotted smoke at the location and heard gunshots a few minutes later."
The demonstration ended after it became evident that the eviction drive would begin without delay." Joyful Abedin added. Ahmed Ali, a resident of Dhalpur No 3, told the fact-finding team, "When I arrived at my house, I witnessed the cops setting fire to it. I cried uncontrollably and begged them not to put fire on my home. Instead, they ignored me and set fire to my house, destroying eight quintals of jute, paddy, utensils, beds, and all other goods and chattels. They even murdered and stole away my hens and ducks. My burning house and helpless sobbing were streamed on a web portal, which I subsequently discovered."