GUWAHATI, April 6: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday claimed that the Congress’ media conference on Sunday accusing his wife of holding “multiple foreign passports”, had a Pakistan link.
“The Pakistani link to the media conference has become very apparent. The entire material of the media conference by the Congress was taken from a Pakistani social media group,” Sarma informed mediapersons here, while making a point-by-point rebuttal of Congress leader Pawan Khera’s allegations in the media conference.
The chief minister further said that over the past few days, several talk shows were conducted in Pakistan about Assam’s elections, and that in every talk show, the final conclusion was that Congress should win, and form a government in the state.
Meanwhile, the chief minister’s wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, has lodged criminal and civil defamation cases against Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera for raising the issue in public using fraud documents to influence the outcome of the election.
“Yesterday, my wife filed an FIR with the Assam Police’s crime branch. I believe that police will register the case in the appropriate section of law and take necessary action,” Sarma said.
The chief minister said the presentation of fabricated documents in the public domain attracts serious penal provisions under laws governing fraud and forgery, including corresponding sections under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
He further asserted as fabricated documents were used to influence the outcome of elections, the offence has become very severe, attracting life imprisonment.
“People can get a long-term visa, or what is called a golden visa in the UAE, but cannot get a passport if he/she is not a citizen by birth in that country. UAE never gives passports to people who are not citizens of the country,” the chief minister said.
He further stated that the UAE government and the Indian government have confirmed that the passport produced by Khera of Riniki Bhuyan Sharma is fake.
“The Egyptian passport is also fake, which can be easily proven through a Google reverse search,” Sarma said, while also claiming discrepancies in the photos shown to be that of his wife in the fake passports.
Sarma further slammed the Opposition party for stooping to such a low level and that the party’s leaders would have to face legal action in due course for attempting to influence the Assam elections.
