Assam BJP deletes video showing CM Himanta Sarma shooting at photographs of Muslims

Guwahati: Drawing flak from Opposition Congress and many others, Assam unit of BJP on Sunday deleted a video it posted on social media showing CM Himanta Biswa Sarma allegedly pointing a gun to shoot at photographs of two Muslims framed on a wall.

The video, uploaded on Saturday (February 7), showed Sarma pointing a gun at a photograph of Congress MP, Gaurav Gogoi, depicted wearing a white skullcap. Another bearded person looked on.

The video, which garnered more than five lakh video on X within hours, however, sparked a row with the Opposition Congress reacting sharply, who accused the ruling BJP of promoting hatred against Muslims ahead of Assembly elections in Assam, in March-April.

Calling it a call to genocide, Congress general secretary (Organisation), K C Venugopal posted on X,"…This is not an innocuous video to be ignored as troll content. It is poison spread from the very top, and there must be consequences for this. There is no hope that (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi will condemn or act against this, but the judiciary must act and there shouldn’t be any leniency shown in this case."

Several lawyers and activists also condemned and called it another act of BJP to push its polarisation politics ahead of the elections.

This came amid frequent statements by CM Sarma targetting the "miyas," the Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam. Sarma has also come under attack of the Opposition parties.