Guwahati: Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Tuesday lodged an FIR at Dispur Police Station in Guwahati against an AI-generated video posted recently on the official ‘X’ handle of the Assam BJP. The video, which was later deleted after sparking controversy, allegedly depicted chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma firing at members of the minority community.The video showed Sarma purportedly taking aim with a rifle and firing at two people. One of them wore a skull cap and the other had a beard, while the caption read, “point-blank shot”.
The police complaint letter, signed by Congress MLAs Diganta Barman and Sibamoni Bora, demanded the immediate arrest of Sarma. Police did not yet register a case at the time of filing this report.
According to the FIR, “highly provocative content” was shared on February 7 through the official “X” handle of the BJP Assam Pradesh (@BJP4Assam). The complaint stated that the content depicted CM Sarma symbolically firing at Muslims at point-blank range. The FIR further alleged that the caption accompanying the video used phrases such as “foreigner free Assam,” “No mercy,” “Why did you not go to Pakistan?” and “There is no forgiveness to Bangladeshis”. Congress alleged that the content deliberately targeted the minority Muslim community of the state with “malicious intent”. Reacting to the FIR, Sarma said, “You all know against whom I am. What will happen to me if they lodge a complaint against me? For me, black is black and white is white.”Congress people cannot frighten me.” “Let Sibamoni Bora, Diganta Barman, or even their malik Rahul Gandhi lodge a complaint against me,” Sarma told mediapersons, showing his thumb to the Congress leaders on camera.The FIR by Congress stated that the circulation of such an AI-generated video aimed to humiliate and provoke a particular community, which could seriously disturb social harmony and create an atmosphere of hatred and tension in society. “The aforesaid content targeting a particular community is highly provocative and communal, which will definitely lead to social disharmony amongst people,” read the FIR.At the time of filing the case, the two MLAs were accompanied by Bedabrat Bora, chairman of the Media and Communication Department of APCC, and Gopal Sharma, state coordinator. Following the filing of the FIR, the APCC demanded that a case be registered under appropriate sections of penal law.Bedabrat Bora questioned whether the state BJP was attempting to portray the CM as a “gun-wielding terrorist” through such content.
