GUWAHATI: Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, has filed a Rs 100 crore defamation suit against AAP leader and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia over the latter’s corruption allegation regarding the purchase of PPE kits during the pandemic period.
The suit was filed in the court of civil judge Kamrup (Metro). Advocate Padmadhar Nayak said, “Manish Sisodia gave a political statement and dragged my client Riniki Bhuyan Sarma. She had donated the PPE kits under CSR activities.”
Earlier this month, there was a war of words between Sisodia and the Assam CM. Referring to a media report, Sisodia had accused Sarma of indulging in corruption by awarding contracts of PPE kits and other Covid-related items to his wife and son’s business partners. The AAP leader had asked as to why the firm linked to Sarma’s wife was awarded the contract at Rs 990 per PPE kit when another firm was given only Rs 600 for the same on the same day.
Sarma had then hit back at Sisodia, threatening to file a criminal defamation suit against the Delhi Deputy CM. “Stop sermonising and I will see you soon in Guwahati as you will face criminal defamation,” Sarma had tweeted.
The AAP had lodged a complaint with Guwahati Police demanding that a criminal case is registered against Sarma over the “PPE kits scam”. The party also petitioned Governor Jagdish Mukhi in this regard.
Dismisses charges
Riniki had dismissed the charges and said when not a single PPE kit was available in Assam, she had reached out to an acquaintance to deliver them