Assam Chief Minister Used Public Money To Charter Flights For Wedding, BJP Meetings: Report
BJP leader and Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma hired chartered flights to attend weddings and party- activities by using the taxpayer”s fund from the state government, The wire reported citing a Right To Information Act (RTI). Himanta Sarma after joining the BJP from Congress in 2015 rose to be one of the important leaders of the saffron party. The former Congress leader is often out with the BJP’s campaign activities.
To an RIT query filed by The CrossCurrent on August 26, 2022, the government replied that the Assam chief minister has spent the government money to hire helicopters and planes to attend marriage functions and party meetings, the news portal reported.
It was following The CrossCurrent’s appeal to the State Information Commission that the information under the RTI was shared as the state’s General Administration Department initially did not respond to the application. Even then, the information provided by the department was only “partial.” The CrossCurrent had asked for details from May 10, 2021, and claims that it got only partial details.
In addition, another RTI request to the Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC) had asked for the details regarding the department hiring chartered flights for the chief minister’s use as such services are routed through ATDC by the state administration. The report alleges that even after passing three months, no reply was given to the RTI request. It further noted that withholding information constitutes a violation of the RTI Act 2005 which directs the concerned officials to respond to an RTI request within 30 days.
However, hours after the report by The Wire came out, the chief minister in a social media post on X (formerly Twitter) termed the news report as “mischievous, misleading and a lazy hit job.”
It further explained that no expenditure of chief minister election campaigns was borne by the State exchequer. “All expenses, including flights, are paid for by the political party via bank transfer/ cheque. Whenever the chief minister visits any district in the State or neighbouring States for official engagements there could be social functions such as condolence meetings or weddings that coincide with the visit, the tweet explained.
This story by media outlet “The Wire” is mischievous, misleading and a lazy hit job based on selective reading of handful of tweets.
The facts are as follows
1. No expenditure of HCM Dr @himantabiswa election campaigns are borne by the State exchequer. All expenses, including… https://t.co/zb6ZdvSRtz
— Chief Minister Assam (@CMOfficeAssam) February 3, 2024
