Swear on Bhagavad Gita Gogoi dares Assam CM Himanta to deny wife's multiple passports assets

Nagaon (Assam), Apr 6 (PTI) Hours after Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma denied Congress allegations regarding his wife allegedly holding multiple passports and properties abroad, Lok Sabha MP Gaurav Gogoi on Monday challenged the BJP leader to deny the claims under oath on the Bhagavad Gita.
    Speaking to reporters after an election rally in Raha, the Assam Congress president questioned Sarma and asked whether he was hiding assets and business interests abroad while spreading "falsehoods" about political rivals.
    A day after Congress leaders Pawan Khera and Gogoi sought to know whether Sarma’s wife has three foreign passports, owns property in Dubai, has companies in the US, or has placed assets in shell companies, the chief minister on Monday morning claimed the opposition party had concocted the charges using false information from a Pakistani social media group.
    "I told this yesterday, and I am again repeating it now -- I can say under an oath on the Bhagavad Gita that I don't have any property in London as alleged by Sarma. Can he do that? I challenge him to come to a common place and to do the same under an oath on the Bhagavad Gita," Gogoi said.
    He asserted that if such properties were not declared in the election affidavit, Sarma could not now accept their existence, as it would lead to the cancellation of his candidature.
    "The questions are simple -- does your wife possess a Golden Visa for Dubai? Do you or any family member own property there? Is the Golden visa on an Indian passport? Does any family member of Himanta Biswa Sarma operate a business in a foreign country?
    "Has Himanta Biswa Sarma disclosed his or his family's wealth and properties abroad in his election affidavit? Sarma should welcome an investigation if he has nothing to hide," Gogoi said.
    He asserted that if the Congress comes to power in Assam, it would pursue investigations into Sarma's alleged undisclosed foreign holdings and business operations.
    "Legal action will be taken against all illegal properties, businesses and networks linked to him," the Deputy Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha said.
    At a press conference in Guwahati in the morning, Sarma said these charges have been made to influence the poll results, which is "punishable under the law".
    He also alleged that the documents the Congress used to make the allegations against his wife were sourced from a social media group "Pakistanis in Ajman", and her photo was morphed on a lost passport of a person from that country.
    The CM said his wife Riniki Bhuyan Sharma has filed a police complaint against Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera against the allegations.
    Khera on Sunday alleged that Sarma's wife has three passports of the UAE, Egypt and Antigua-Barbuda, two properties in Dubai and assets in shell companies in the US.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)