Lucknow's municipal corporation, led by Mayor Sushma Kharkwal, visited a slum in Phool Bagh Bahadurpur on December 4. Their goal was to identify "Bangladeshis and Rohingya" living illegally. Several residents, mainly from Assam, were asked to vacate after failing to produce certain legal papers. The move follows Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's directive on November 22 to identify and act against alleged illegal immigrants across districts. Imtiyaz Ali, 38, from Assam, said, "Our families were crying as they [authorities] weren’t willing to listen to us. They took my handcart and told us to vacate the slum in 15 days. They should’ve checked our documents first, but they just entered our homes and snatched our livelihoods." More than 50 families from Assam earn their living by collecting scrap. They pay rent to stay on private land. Sujan Ali, another resident, said, "We’ve been living in Lucknow for 18 years and have all the valid documents such as Aadhaar, PAN, and voter ID cards. Our names are also included in the National Register of Citizens. We will hand over anyone residing illegally, but don’t terrorise us. Return our handcarts and let us work. I haven’t been able to work since December 4." Opposition parties have criticized the drive. Congress national secretary Shahnawaz Alam said, "We visited the slum and found that they have all valid identity documents, proving they are Indian citizens. The slum is on private land, so why is the municipal corporation asking them to vacate in 15 days? Why are their handcarts being taken away? This is wrong. We demand an apology from the authorities. Such actions based on language or region will divide the nation." The Congress delegation has promised to support the Assam migrants and called for an apology from civic authorities for "harassing" them. Meanwhile, video clips of the document checks have gone viral on social media, sparking debates across the state.