Cong asks Himanta 3 questions on his 'family's properties, companies abroad'
Guwahati (PTI): Congress leaders Pawan Khera and Gaurav Gogoi on Sunday evening asked Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to answer three questions on whether his family has properties and companies abroad.
The questions were asked in a press conference here, hours after Sarma said that he and his wife would file a defamation case against Khera within 48 hours for making “false allegations” that she has multiple passports and holds properties in Dubai, which were not mentioned in his poll affidavit.
Khera had made those accusations in a presser in New Delhi earlier on Sunday, just four days before the state goes to polls on April 9.
Addressing a press conference here in the evening, the Congress leaders posed three questions to the Assam CM: whether his wife or family owns property in Dubai, has companies in Wyoming in the USA, or has placed their assets in shell companies.
Gogoi and Khera demanded that Sarma provide an affidavit to the Election Commission of India regarding his wife's alleged property in Dubai, the company in Wyoming and assets held in shell companies.
"These details are missing in the affidavit submitted to the ECI, and his nomination is a fit case for disqualification," he said.
Gogoi said that Sarma has accused him of not divulging his wife's alleged bank accounts in Pakistan, adding, "I can put my hand on the Bhagwad Gita and say that this is not true, but can he do the same?"
Khera, however, alleged Sarma might not tell the truth even ''on the Gita, as I don't think he is really religious and we want him to give an affidavit on these properties which he has not mentioned during filing of nomination''.
The party also demanded that the Centre form a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the allegations -- multiple passports, undisclosed foreign assets, and the source of funds in foreign entities.
The EC also must examine the alleged non-disclosure of foreign assets and take appropriate action, the party said.
Regarding Sarma's threat to file a defamation case against Khera, the leaders stated that this is nothing new, as he has filed several defamation cases, including one against Gogoi, whenever corruption charges have been levelled against him.
"We want him to go to the court and then we will come with sacks full of documents to prove the truth. We challenge him to go to court today itself; why wait till tomorrow?" he added.
Giving a list of defamation cases filed by Sarma, the state Congress president claimed that whenever any allegation is brought against him, he files a defamation case and the people now know that this is his way of "hiding the truth".
Gogoi also claimed that the CM is not saying anything about the properties and companies, but has been threatening to go to court on the allegations that his wife Riniki Bhuyan Sharma has three passports.
However, both Sarma and his spouse rejected the accusations.
Gogoi asserted that these facts came to light from documents submitted while applying for a specialised visa for Dubai.
The CM or the BJP is yet to respond to the new charge.
Khera had earlier alleged at a press conference in New Delhi that Sarma's wife holds three passports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Antigua-Barbuda and Egypt, which expire on March 2027, August 2031 and February 2029, respectively.
Asked why these allegations were made barely four days before the assembly elections, the AICC spokesperson said here, "We had information before, but the facts needed to be checked....as much as we can verify being in the opposition''.
He said that these are just the "tip of the iceberg and there is more to come."
Gogoi said that these are cases that should be investigated by the CBI, Income Tax department and the ED, but the Centre will not let them do it.
"We cannot change the loyalty of the law-enforcing agencies, but we can change the government. We will go to the people's court, and the people will make the change on April 9'', he said.
Former Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, who was also present at the press conference, said, ''The PM had commented 'Na khaunga aur na khane doonga' (his government will not be corrupt and will not allow others to be so). Now we have to see what steps is taken by him.''
Earlier, Sarma also claimed that there were 'serious discrepancies' in the documents shared by Khera in Delhi, which suggests that it was a “crude and poorly executed attempt at digital manipulation”.
The chief minister, listing the anomalies in the documents circulated by Khera, said in a post on X: “Busting Congress’ propaganda—serious discrepancies exposed. The documents being circulated show multiple glaring inconsistencies, suggesting a crude and poorly executed attempt at digital manipulation''.
He said the Congress used ‘Sarma’ as his wife’s surname instead of the official 'Sharma'.
"The photograph appears to be a publicly available image, not a standard biometric capture," the CM said.
Sarma asserted that he was confident that Khera’s ''campaign of falsehood is nearing its end. Eventually, Mr Khera will go to Jail''.
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Vartha Bharati–Sankalp predictions align closely with Karnataka bypoll results
Bengaluru: The Vartha Bharati–Sankalp election analysis has shown a high level of accuracy in predicting the outcome of the recent Karnataka Assembly by-elections held in May 2026, correctly calling winners in both constituencies and closely estimating vote share trends.
The by-elections were held in Bagalkot and Davanagere South, drawing significant political attention as both seats were seen as key tests for the ruling Congress and opposition BJP.
According to the analysis, Vartha Bharati–Sankalp had made three major projections ahead of the results the winning party, vote share percentages, and margin of victory.
In both constituencies, the platform accurately predicted that the Congress would emerge victorious. The outcome matched the projections, with Congress candidates winning in Bagalkot and Davanagere South.
In terms of vote share, the predictions were largely in line with the final results. In Bagalkot, the BJP’s vote share was forecast in the range of 40 to 46 per cent, while the actual figure stood at 42.9 per cent. The Congress vote share, however, exceeded expectations, with the party securing 55.4 per cent against a projected range of 43 to 48 per cent.
The margin of victory in Bagalkot turned out to be significantly higher than anticipated. While the projection had placed the margin between 2,000 and 3,500 votes, the final margin was around 22,332 votes.
In Davanagere South, the predictions also remained largely accurate. The Congress vote share was projected between 43 and 51 per cent, and the final figure stood at 43.9 per cent. The BJP was expected to secure between 42 and 50 per cent but ended with 40.3 per cent.
The analysis had also identified the role of SDPI as a potential spoiler in the constituency. While its vote share was estimated around 6 per cent, the party eventually secured around 12 per cent of the vote.
The margin of victory in Davanagere South was predicted to be between 1,500 and 2,600 votes. The actual margin was higher at around 5,708 votes, though the contest remained relatively close as anticipated.
Overall, the performance of Vartha Bharati–Sankalp stood out for correctly identifying the winning parties in both seats and maintaining close accuracy in vote share estimates, with only limited deviations in specific cases.
