Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday defended police action against Congress leader Pawan Khera, saying that law enforcement was simply performing its duty in connection with a case filed by his wife.
“We have put the police after Khera. Whom else will we task it with? It is not the ULFA that is after him; it is the police. If there is an FIR, it is the duty of the police to act on it,” Sarma told reporters after polling concluded for the Assam Assembly elections.
He added, “Police are slaves of the law, and they're going to the house of a person named in a case, which is legal. The police are paid salaries to go to the houses of criminals.”
The remarks came after Khera accused the chief minister of “unleashing” the police against him over allegations involving Sarma’s wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sharma.
Assam Police had earlier searched Khera’s Delhi residence following the complaint but did not find him.
Sarma also targeted Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, questioning his family’s nationality. “Gaurav Gogoi went to vote (in Jorhat) with his mother, not his wife. I went with my wife. If his wife could have gone with him, it would have looked so nice,” he said.
He further remarked, “This proves my allegations that he couldn't make his own family Indian. How will such a person serve us?”
Continuing his criticism, Sarma said, “During the whole campaign, nobody saw his wife or children. How can he criticise us? We are proud Assamese people. His father (former three-time CM Tarun Gogoi) was a proud Assamese, but not him.”
In another contentious statement, he added, “I can't think of any politician, especially one with Ahom lineage, whose wife and children are Christians, and not Assamese or Indians. In frustration, Gogoi has befriended Khera and is making the false documents (against my wife).”
The chief minister also accused the Congress of invoking the late singer Zubeen Garg for electoral gains, questioning whether party leaders would continue visiting his cremation site after elections.
Sarma also expressed confidence in the BJP’s electoral prospects, stating, “If we get about 90 seats, then the opposition will have around 36 seats, which means the position of leader of the opposition will remain. But if we get 100 seats, then there would be no leader of the opposition position.” The Assam Assembly has 126 seats.
Sarma declined to dismiss opposition leaders entirely, noting, “Everyone gets whatever is in their destiny. I can only say that as of today, the BJP’s fortunes are good. I don't know what will happen in 2031.”
He also slammed sections of the local media, warning they would be “politically and intellectually finished” if the BJP returns to power, and raised allegations against AJP candidate Kunki Chowdhury over land dealings and her family background.
Reiterating BJP’s outreach to younger leaders, Sarma said the party has backed new-generation candidates in the state, contrasting it with opposition narratives.
(With inputs from PTI)
