GUWAHATI: Sujata Gurung Chowdhury, mother of Kunki Chowdhury -- who contested the April 9 Assam elections from the Guwahati Central seat as an Assam Jatiya Parishad candidate -- has petitioned the National Commission for Women (NCW), seeking its intervention.
She alleged that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma made “false, defamatory, and misleading” statements during the election campaign, which were followed by online harassment.
In a letter addressed to the NCW chairperson, Sujata wrote, “I am a private individual with no active involvement in electoral politics.”
She said she had been drawn into public discourse because her daughter was in the poll fray.
According to Sujata, Sarma had alleged during election campaign that her social media activity “hurt the sentiments of Sanatani people,” that she harbours sympathies for Pakistan, supports “anti-national” individuals and publicly consumes beef.
She dismissed the allegations as “false, baseless, and malicious,” stating that they appeared to have been made with the intent to defame her and politically target her daughter.
Sarma had earlier displayed a photograph before journalists, allegedly showing Sujata consuming beef. She clarified that the image was taken at The International Church of Cannabis, located in Denver, Colorado, USA.
“The object in the image is an artistic prop shaped like a conical cylinder and not any form of food. The allegation that I was ‘eating beef’ is factually incorrect and deliberately misleading. Such claims are deeply offensive and damaging to my personal reputation,” she wrote in her complaint.
A purported supporting letter from the Elevation Ministries, Inc states, “The item that she is putting up to her lips is a pillow, not any type of meat. This is a pillow designed for visitors of our museum to take pictures with at the entrance to our museum.”
Sujata said subsequent to the allegations, her personal photographs, including those with her minor son, were being circulated widely on social media without consent and that she had been subjected to online abuse, harassment, and character assassination.
“Several unidentified individuals and social media handles have circulated manipulated images and AI-generated content to malign my dignity. These acts have caused me and my family, especially my minor child, severe mental distress and reputational harm,” Sujata wrote.
She urged the NCW to take immediate cognisance of the matter and direct authorities to investigate the defamatory statements and online harassment.
She further urged the Commission to ensure the removal of the defamatory, manipulated, and harmful content from social media platforms, recommend appropriate legal action against the Chief Minister and provide necessary protection to safeguard her dignity and her minor child’s privacy.