Congress files police complaint against Sarma over ‘point-blank shot’ video

Guwahati: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Tuesday lodged a formal police complaint over the now-deleted “point-blank shot” video posted on the state BJP’s X handle.

In the complaint filed at the Dispur Police Station, Congress MLAs Sibamoni Bora and Diganta Barman alleged that the video, posted on February 7, depicted chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma holding a pistol and symbolically targeting members of a minority community with a caption that read "Point blank shot".

The content deliberately targeted Bengali-speaking Muslims in the state, often referred to derogatorily as “Miyas” or “Bangladeshis”, and was capable of provoking communal tension, the petition alleged.


Barman said the video had drawn condemnation beyond Assam.

Sarma earlier said that he had no knowledge of any such video.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday filed a police complaint against Sarma in Hyderabad, demanding criminal action against the Assam CM.

"I have lodged an official complaint demanding criminal action against Himanta Sarma for his (now deleted) violent video showing him shooting Muslims. Unfortunately, genocidal hate speech has become a norm," Owaisi wrote on X.

Sarma, who denied having any knowledge of the video, said on Monday: "I am ready to go to jail, what can I do? I do not know anything about any video. If he has filed a case against me, arrest me; what objection do I have? I have no objection.”

Speaking to reporters, he added: “But I stand by my words, I am against Bangladeshi infiltrators, and I will continue to be against them."

Assam BJP unit president Dilip Saikia said the party removed the video after it found that the content was wrongly interpreted and was causing discomfort to people.

The video was taken down after a political backlash. In some frames of the video, Sarma was portrayed as a cowboy and there were embedded texts in Assamese reportedly reading, "Why did you not go to Pakistan?" and "There is no forgiveness to Bangladeshis."