Riniki Bhuyan Sharma files FIR against Congress over passport allegations ahead of Assam polls

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sharma, lodged an FIR on April 6 against Congress leaders for alleging she holds multiple foreign passports. She accused the opposition of frustration-driven smears using AI-generated fakes, just days before Assam votes on April 9.

Speaking to reporters, Sharma dismissed the claims as a desperate ploy. "I have taken legal action. I have lodged an FIR against them," she said, urging Assam Police to coordinate with the Ministry of External Affairs for proof. "This is not to be entertained in a very lenient manner. Let justice prevail."

The row erupted after Congress Media Chairperson Pawan Khera claimed at a Sunday press conference in Delhi that Sharma possesses passports from the UAE, Egypt, and Antigua and Barbuda, plus two Dubai properties omitted from Sarma's election affidavit. Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi amplified the attack on X, calling Sarma "an embarrassment for Assam and India" over alleged undisclosed assets and multiple passports—a criminal offence under Indian law.

Sharma hit back hard, labelling the accusations "poorly fabricated images of imaginary passports and documents." In an X post, she mocked Khera's efforts: "Aapki sirf tapasya mein hi nahi, AI generation aur photoshopping mein bhi kami reh gayi." She charged Congress with defaming her family despite their non-political stance: "It seems that a mad dog has bitten them and from the top rung of the Congress to the lowest rung... they don't have anything else to do except defaming people."

Chief Minister Sarma echoed the rebuttal, terming Khera's remarks "malicious, fabricated, and politically motivated lies." He vowed to file criminal and civil defamation suits within 48 hours. "Press conference by Pawan Khera reflects the deep frustration and panic within the Congress party," Sarma said, predicting over 100 seats for BJP. "Truth will prevail... Eventually Mr Khera will go to Jail."

Sharma linked the barbs to BJP's rising popularity. "I think it is directly a counter against Chief Minister HB Sarma because the kind of wave that Assam is having for the BJP and the Congress is nowhere surfacing anywhere," she noted. She ridiculed specifics like a "hotel room number in Dubai," calling it "like a cow climbing a tree" and violating India's no-dual-citizenship rule.

BJP leaders rallied behind Sarma. Spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi condemned Congress for "baseless, factless, and fake document-based accusations," while the party framed the episode as opposition panic amid strong poll winds.

Congress maintained the allegations spotlight Sarma's affidavit gaps and foreign ties, including "passports from two Muslim countries" despite his anti-Muslim rhetoric claims. With polls looming, the feud risks turning courts into the real battleground.