Assam Chief Minister Pledges Legal Action Against Congress Leader Over Allegations
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday vowed to take the "stringent action" against Congress leader Pawan Khera over allegations made at a press conference in Delhi. Sarma dismissed the claims as a digitally manipulated "fake AI campaign" and expressed confidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will secure at least 100 seats in the upcoming assembly elections.
Allegations and Immediate Response
The controversy erupted after Khera alleged that Sarma's wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sharma, holds three passports: a UAE Golden Card, an Antigua and Barbuda passport, and an Egyptian passport. Khera also claimed the family has business interests worth Rs 52,000 crore in the United States and presented property documents linking Sarma’s family to apartments in Dubai.
Sarma responded by calling these allegations politically motivated lies aimed at misleading the people of Assam. He told reporters, "I will take stringent action against Congress leader Pawan Khera, just wait for some days. We will win at least 100 seats in the elections."
Legal Action Announced
The chief minister announced that both he and his wife will file criminal and civil defamation cases against Khera. In a post on X, Sarma wrote, "I have complete faith in the judiciary. Once the truth is established in a court of law, Shri Pawan Khera will face the consequences of his actions, and the law will take its due course."
Sarma further claimed that the property documents used to link his family to Dubai apartments were stolen from the document-sharing platform Scribd. He identified the real owners as "Md. Ahmad and Fatima Sulaiman," asserting the documents were misrepresented.
Wife's Rebuttal and Counter-Accusations
Riniki Bhuyan Sharma rejected all allegations on X, stating, "Neither I, nor my children, nor my husband have any business interests or assets in Dubai or anywhere outside India." She also took a swipe at Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi, who had called for further investigation into the matter, terming the Chief Minister an "embarrassment."
Responding to Gogoi, Sharma questioned whether his wife "has or has ever had a bank account in Pakistan" and challenged him to make those details public, escalating the political exchange.
Discrepancies in Documents Highlighted
Sarma pointed out multiple discrepancies in the alleged documents, including:
- Surname mismatches
- Use of a publicly available photograph instead of a biometric capture
- Spelling errors such as "Egyptiann"
He flagged the documents connecting him to Dubai apartments and labeled the entirety of allegations as #CongFakeAICampaign, emphasizing what he called a fabricated narrative.
Political Context and Timing
This escalating exchange comes just days before polling in Assam, scheduled for April 9 across 126 constituencies, with counting set for May 4. The allegations and counter-allegations have intensified the political atmosphere, with both parties leveraging the controversy ahead of the crucial elections.
Sarma's confidence in BJP's electoral prospects remains high, as he reiterated the party's goal of winning at least 100 seats, positioning this incident as part of a broader campaign strategy by opponents.
