Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Spent Public Money to Charter Flights for BJP

This news report is a collaboration between The Wire and Guwahati-based news portal, The CrossCurrent.

Guwahati/New Delhi: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma used state government funds amounting to crores of rupees to hire helicopters and chartered planes to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party, both within and outside the state, Right to Information replies from the Assam government have revealed. This is a prima facie violation of the Election Commission’s model code of conduct.

RTI requests filed by The CrossCurrent on August 26, 2022, also reveal that Sarma hired chartered planes with taxpayers’ money to attend a number of weddings, apart from party meetings. No government is supposed to spend any public funds on non-official work. ‘Non-official work’ naturally includes party-related activities and attending private parties – neither of which can be paid for by public funds.

In September, the Sarma government had claimed in the state assembly that the money spent on hiring chartered planes were only for government programmes. 

Initially, the state’s General Administration Department did not respond to the RTI application filed in August 2022, seeking information on such financial overheads of the government. On September 30, 2023, Pradip Sarma, under secretary and State Public Information Officer at the department, shared some information only after the State Information Commission – responding to The CrossCurrent’s appeal – directed it to do so on August 8, 2023.  

Though the RTI application had sought such details from May 10, 2021, till the time of reply, the information provided by the department even after the Commission’s direction, has only been partial. 

Additionally, the reporters filed a separate RTI request with the Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC), related to the department hiring chartered flights for the chief minister’s use as such services are routed through ATDC by the state administration. The ATDC is yet to reply, even though three months have passed. This is in violation of the RTI Act 2005 which says the officers designated as the first appellate authority must reply to an RTI query within 30 days.

Not model conduct

As per clause 7 (a) of the Election Commission’s Model Code of Conduct, “The ministers shall not combine their official visit with electioneering work and shall not also make use of official machinery or personnel during the electioneering work.”

Clause 7 (b) explicitly states that “government transport including official aircrafts, vehicles, machinery and personnel shall not be used for furtherance of the interest of the party in power.”

However, government-provided information, though partial, and photographic evidence from Sarma’s own social media handles have shown that the chief minister violated the code at least five times, by using Assam government funded helicopters to campaign for the candidates of his party’s allies. 

1. As per the RTI reply, Sarma used a state exchequer-funded helicopter on October 17, 2021, to fly from Guwahati to Tamulpur and back. That day, Sarma was seen campaigning for a candidate of the BJP ally, the United People’s Party Liberal – Jolen Daimary – who was contesting in a by-election from the assembly seat of Tamulpur. 

2. The next day, on October 18, 2021, Sarma again used a helicopter paid for by the state government to travel from Guwahati to Gossaigaon. That day, he attended a memorial meeting there to pay tribute to Justin Lakra, founding president of All Adivasi Student Association of Assam. Sarma also attended an event organised for the Kati Bihu festival. 

3. A day later, on October 19, 2021, the chief minister’s social media handles showed that he campaigned in the by-election, for another United People’s Party Liberal candidate, Jiron Basumatary, at Gossaigaon.

4. On October 30, 2021, by-elections were held also in Thowra, Mariani and Bhabanipur assembly constituencies in Assam besides Gossaigaon and Tamulpur. While Sarma used helicopters to campaign for his party in those constituencies too, it is unclear who funded them since the state’s General Administration Department has not provided information specific to those travel dates. The by-poll to the Majuli assembly constituency was held on March 7, 2022. The seat had fallen vacant after former Assam chief minister and now Union minister, Sarbananda Sonowal, resigned from the seat, having been elected to the Rajya Sabha in September 2021. 

5. On February 16, 2022, BJP…