“We will investigate the matter according to the law,” said a senior police official.
Guwahati:
A case has been filed against the powerful Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, for allegedly promoting enmity between different groups by making “false statements”, days after claiming on social media that supporters of the AIUDF had raised “Pakistan Zindabad” slogans at Silchar airport, police said on Tuesday.
The case was filed on the basis of a complaint filed Monday by Congress at the Bhangagarh police station in Guwahati, they said.
Mr. Sarma and a brigade of BJP leaders criticized supporters of AIUDF president Badruddin Ajmal on November 5, alleging that they had raised “Pakistan Zindabad” slogans at Silchar airport, but the party in opposition refuted it and said the BJP had distorted Zindabad’s “Aziz Khan Slogan.
“A case has been registered in the relevant sections. We will investigate the matter according to the law,” a senior police official told PTI.
Another official said the case was registered in IPC sections promoting enmity between different groups and attempting to commit offenses punishable by life imprisonment or other punishment.
“These sections will be read with Article 67 (publication or transmission of obscene material in electronic form) of the computer law,” he added.
The slogans were raised as Aziz Ahmed Khan, AIUDF MP from Karimganj South constituency, accompanied Ajmal, an MP from Lok Sabha, to Silchar airport in the Barak valley, sensitive to the linguistic and religious plan.
“Look at the courage of these anti-national fundamentalists who shout PAKISTAN ZINDABAD as they welcome MP Badruddin Ajmal. This completely exposes the Indian National Congress which is encouraging these forces by forging an alliance. We will fight them tooth and nail. Jai Hind” Mr. Sarma said on Facebook.
Mr Sarma, the head of the BJP-led Northeast Democratic Alliance (NEDA), is a powerful politician in the region and holds most of the key portfolios of the Assam government, including finance, health and education.
In the complaint filed by the Secretary General of Congress, Ranjan Bora, it was alleged that Sarma has a “habit” of making “commonly sensitive” remarks, and such a statement was made about the slogans raised at the Silchar airport to create “a discord between different groups”.
“It will be relevant to mention here that the said accused used to make cowardly and sensitive statements at the community level and at a time when the assembly elections are imminent, such a statement can create community tensions”, he added.
The complaint also pointed out that Facebook flagged Mr. Sarma’s post as “bogus and fake” after having it verified by third-party fact-checkers.
A day after Mr Sarma uploaded the video, Facebook said, “Independent auditors say this information has no factual basis.”
Facebook also blocked the video from playing automatically. However, Facebook has now withdrawn its warning on the video without any explanation.
Rajdeep Roy, a BJP MP from Silchar, said he filed a complaint with the police against Ajmal and supporters of the AIUDF over the slogans.
The AIUDF is part of the “Grand Alliance” forged by Congress against the ruling BJP and its allies for the state assembly elections, which will likely take place next year.
