Assam CM threatens to sue Congress leader for foreign assets ‘exposé’

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday (April 5, 2026) threatened to sue Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera for claiming that his wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, possesses the passports of at least three countries, owns luxury properties in Dubai, and has investments worth millions in the U.S.

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Mr. Khera said his claims were based on documents received from reliable sources abroad. “Such a major revelation against any Chief Minister and his family has never occurred in the political history of independent India,” Mr. Khera said.

He claimed that one of the three passports is a “golden card” issued in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on March 14, 2022, and is valid till March 13, 2027. “The second is a passport from Antigua and Barbuda, issued on August 26, 2021, valid till August 25, 2031. The third is a passport from Egypt, issued on February 13, 2022, valid till February 12, 2029,” he said.

Mr. Khera said it was ironic that Mr. Sarma attacked Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi’s wife for not being an Indian citizen, when his entrepreneur wife had acquired the passports of foreign countries. “How is the wife of a sitting Chief Minister not an Indian citizen? It is a matter of worry,” he said.

Accusing Mr. Sarma of spewing hatred against Muslims in Assam, the Congress leader sought to know why his wife held the passports of two Islamic countries. “It is upon (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah to tell us how she is holding three passports at the same time,” Mr. Khera said.

U.S. as tax haven? 

Mr. Khera also displayed documents purportedly showing the Chief Minister’s family owning luxury hotels in the UAE, and a limited liability company in Wyoming, U.S.

The acts of using the U.S. as a tax haven to stash money away and owning multiple passports “means that they are planning to flee the country after losing the elections”, he said. Such acts called for the arrest of the Chief Minister, he added.

Dismissing the claims outright, Mr. Sarma threatened to sue Mr. Khera within 48 hours. The Congress leader’s accusations reflected the deep frustration and panic within his party, Mr. Sarma said.

“As Assam moves decisively towards a historic mandate, such desperate and baseless attacks only expose their sinking ground. I categorically reject every allegation made by him. These are malicious, fabricated, and politically motivated lies aimed at misleading the people of Assam,” the Chief Minister said.

He and his wife would file criminal and civil defamation cases against Mr. Khera, Mr. Sarma further said, asserting that the latter would be held fully accountable for his “reckless and defamatory” statements.

Stating that the people of Assam would not be misled by such propaganda, he said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-National Democratic Alliance (NDA) remained focused, determined, and confident of securing a decisive mandate of more than 100 seats. Assam has 126 Assembly seats.