GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday claimed that the body double allegedly used by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during the 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ was a man named ‘Kurukshetra’.
He claimed the person left Assam after he was exposed by a media house.
“Mr Kurukshetra from Madhya Pradesh was used as the body double. The person was requisitioned from Manipur (where the yatra started). In Assam, he was in the bus and whenever Rahul was inside, he (body double) was on the front,” Sarma claimed.
He further claimed that it was on the night the body double was in Byrnihat in Meghalaya that the media house in question had exposed him.
“The next morning, he took a flight to Delhi from Guwahati and then, went to Bhopal. Why was he sent back from Assam without being brought before the media? I will share with you everything including his departure, telephone details,” the Assam CM said.
He said when a photograph of the body double emerged, the person was moved out of Assam.
“I was advised by many to not expose the body double and that’s the reason why I was refraining all this while. I will not say anything without record. We did a thorough investigation,” Sarma said, adding that the Congress should have brought the person before the media.