On Wednesday, the Congress claimed that Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma leveraged his authority to secure a Central government subsidy of Rs 10 crore for his wife's media company.
According to Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, this subsidy was awarded on November 10 under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampad Yojanas agro-processing clusters program to Pride East Entertainment Private Limited for a project with a total worth of Rs 25.88 crore.
The company in question is owned by Himanta Biswa Sarma's wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, as indicated by the project details under the government scheme. This company possesses two news channels, one newspaper, a digital portal, and at least three entertainment channels. Additionally, it has been diversifying its operations into silk production and food processing, according to reports from Newslaundry.
The initial allegations were raised by the Guwahati-based news portal, The CrossCurrent, which reported that Sarma's wife had become the majority shareholder in the company back in 2018. Currently, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, her son Nandil Biswa Sarma, her mother-in-law Mrinalini Devi, and Bhaskar Sarma serve as directors of the company.
On X, previously known as Twitter, Gaurav Gogoi posted, "PM [Narendra] Modi launched the Kisan Sampada scheme to double the income of farmers of India. But in Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma used his influence to help his wife's firm get Rs 10 crore as part of credit-linked subsidy. Are Central government schemes meant to enrich the BJP?"
The Assam Chief Minister has refuted these allegations.
On Wednesday, Sarma stated that neither his wife nor her company had received any financial subsidies from the Central government.
In response, Gogoi pointed out that the Ministry of Food Processing website clearly displays the names of Riniki Bhuyan Sarma and her company in connection with the subsidy.
