Ali Mech
Ali Mech was a tribal chief in the 13th century CE, in the region of present-day Assam belonging to Boro-Kachari sub tribe called Mech. Biography. Ali Mech is considered the first Muslim convert in Assam. In the wake of Ali Mech's conversion to Islam, some Mech and Koch tribes also adopted the faith. The modern descendents of these converts are the Desi Muslims of Assam. As a tribal chief in the foothills of Kamrup, he aided Bakhtiyar Khilji in his failed invasion of Tibet in 1206 by acting as a guide. E. A. Gait mentions  the following in his famous book "A History of Assam": "Guided by a Mech Chief, Muhammad Bakhtyar marched northwards along the right bank of this river (Karatoya, presently in Bangladesh) for ten days, through a country inhabited by the Koch, Mech and Tharu (Terai) tribes." Ali Mech supposedly bears a Muslim first name because he was fond of Islam and embraced it. Soon hundreds of Mech inhabitants converted to Islam due to growing oppression in the hands of Hindu lords and its caste, customs and traditions.