Guwahati, February 9 Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi accused Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of "inciting genocide" against Muslims through his videos on Monday, and urged the police to take suo motu cognizance.
Gogoi was referring to a video, now deleted, shared by the state BJP on X, which purportedly showed Sarma aiming with a rifle and firing at two people, one wearing a skull cap and the other with a beard, with the caption "point-blank shot".
"The Assam CM is inciting genocide against Muslims through his videos... The police must take suo motu cognizance of Sarma targeting a particular community and sharing vicious social media videos," Gogoi told a press conference.
Speaking to PTI after the press meet, Gogoi added, "He (Sarma) has distributed a video that he later deleted, which clearly showed how he is promoting the genocide of Muslims."
He alleged that Sarma made "hate speeches" against a minority community, and the matter was taken to court, referring to recent statements by the chief minister against 'Miyas' that the community will continue to face "trouble" until he is in power.
'Miya' is originally a derogatory term used for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam, and non-Bengali speakers generally identify them as Bangladeshi immigrants. In recent years, activists from the community have started adopting this term as a gesture of defiance.
"The CM continues to show why he is unfit to occupy this chair. There have been several instances in the recent past where he has committed crimes for which he should be removed from the chair. He should resign," the Congress leader asserted.
At the press conference, Gogoi accused Sarma of pretending to be "secular" when he was in the Congress. Sarma had switched to the BJP in August 2015.
"The chief minister talks so much about Hindus now. If he is actually their champion, let him stop the cow syndicate within 24 hours," Gogoi said, reiterating the Congress' charge about the ruling BJP-led dispensation operating various illegal syndicates.
The Congress MP's comments also came amid a verbal duel with Sarma, who has been alleging that Gogoi and his family have Pakistani links.
Gogoi said he would also explore legal options over his minor children being dragged into the controversy by the CM.
The Congress leader claimed that his wife had visited Pakistan for a work-related purpose in 2013, and he had accompanied her on a 10-day trip to the neighbouring country in December that year.
"The SIT never questioned me about my 10-day visit to Pakistan in 2013. The Assam CM sat over the SIT report for six months, as it has nothing to prove his allegations of my Pakistan links," Gogoi asserted.