HYDERABAD: Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera has approached the Telangana High Court seeking anticipatory bail in a criminal case registered by the Assam Police over his recent remarks concerning Riniki Bhuyan, wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
In a petition filed on Tuesday, Khera sought protection from arrest in connection with Crime No. 4/2026, dated April 5, 2026, registered at the Guwahati Crime Branch Police Station. The FIR invokes multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, including defamation, forgery, cheating, criminal intimidation and criminal conspiracy.
Khera stated that he had not been furnished with a copy of the FIR and argued that the allegations do not make out a prima facie case warranting custodial interrogation. He requested the court to grant anticipatory bail in the event of arrest.
The case stems from statements made by Khera during a press conference in New Delhi, where he alleged that Riniki Bhuyan held multiple passports issued by foreign jurisdictions.
BJP slams Khera’s ‘malicious’ remarks
Khera also referred to documents which, he claimed, indicated ownership of properties in the United Arab Emirates and links to a company registered in the United States. He further alleged that these details were not disclosed in the election affidavit of the CM.
Following the remarks, the Assam Police registered a case, alleging that Khera had circulated false information and made defamatory imputations intended to harm reputation.
The BJP leaders criticised the statements as “baseless” and “malicious”, while the Assam government maintained that the allegations were factually incorrect. Police sources indicated that preliminary inquiries did not support the claims regarding multiple passports. On its part, the Congress defended Khera, stating that the issues raised were based on documents in the public domain.
Sources said the matter is likely to come up for hearing on Thursday before Justice K Sujana of the Telangana High Court.