Latest news with #HimantaBiswaSarma
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
33 minutes ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Over 5K social media accounts from Islamic nations back Assam Cong: Himanta
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday alleged that over 5,000 social media accounts, mostly operated from Islamic countries, have become active in favour of the Assam Congress. Addressing a press conference, Sarma claimed that these accountsoriginating from 47 countries, with the highest numbers from Bangladesh and Pakistan have been focusing exclusively on the activities of a particular Assam Congress leader and the party's state unit pages over the past month. "It is surprising that they do not comment on or like posts by Rahul Gandhi or even the Indian National Congress. They are only focused on a particular leader and the Assam Congress," Sarma said. Besides Assam, they post Islamic fundamentalist content, including pro-Palestine, Iran and Bangladesh's Chief Advisor Prof Md Yunus. Though the CM did not name the leader, he appeared to be referring to Gaurav Gogoi, who was appointed Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president in May last week. Sarma remarked, "We are not concerned with the change in the party's leadership in the state, but this development has taken place in the last month and there must be some link'. 'For the first time, there is so much foreign involvement in Assam politics in the run-up to the 2026 assembly elections', he said. The CM said the central government has been apprised of the issue, calling it a matter of "national security". He said some of the 5,000 accounts have given Guwahati as the location, and 'We are not ruling out that some of the accounts may be from within the state." 'The locations are disclosed in the accounts, and we conducted a forensic audit of those who had joined in the last month," Sarma said. It was found that 700 accounts are from Bangladesh, 350 from Pakistan, 246 from Saudi Arabia, 86 from Kuwait and 35 from Afghanistan, he added. 'Some accounts are private, and deeper investigations are required. It is a serious security concern that over 5,000 social media accounts were opened in a month, and they are commenting and liking posts related to Assam," he added. Besides, there is information that some people from outside have rented houses in two localities of Guwahati and have connected with YouTubers and social media influencers for this purpose, the CM claimed. "Surveillance is being kept on them. Fundamentalist elements have entered Assam and are active in the run-up to the elections,' he said. Sarma also alleged that they have also made inroads into some digital media organisations in the state. He claimed that there are also plans to set up a call centre in Kolkata to carry out such activities. The Chief Minister said it is also possible that these account holders are connected through WhatsApp and other messaging apps as they belong to countries with different time zones and are alerted when any such fundamentalist content is posted. He claimed that Muslims from Assam, whether indigenous or migrants settled here, will not post such content. Sarma said in the next stage, they may take shadow Hindu names like 'many do to marry Hindu women'. He further said that Assam and the North East have always been on the international fundamentalist radar and severing the 'chicken neck' to make it a part of Bangladesh has been an 'unfinished agenda' for the hardcores. 'We are in a very critical situation and the entire matter is being looked into from the national security angle', Sarma added. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Time of India
an hour ago
- Politics
- Time of India
5,000 social media accounts from Islamic countries promoting Assam Congress, alleges Assam CM Himanta
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday alleged that over 5,000 social media accounts, mostly operated from Islamic countries , have become active in favour of the Assam Congress . Addressing a press conference, Sarma claimed that these accounts-originating from 47 countries, with the highest numbers from Bangladesh and Pakistan-have been focusing exclusively on the activities of a particular Assam Congress leader and the party's state unit pages over the past month. "It is surprising that they do not comment on or like posts by Rahul Gandhi or even the Indian National Congress . They are only focused on a particular leader and the Assam Congress," Sarma said. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions settings , opens captions settings dialog captions off , selected Audio Track default , selected Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like AirSense 11 – Smart tech for deep sleep ResMed Buy Now Undo Besides Assam, they post Islamic fundamentalist content, including pro-Palestine, Iran and Bangladesh's Chief Advisor Prof Md Yunus. Though the CM did not name the leader, he appeared to be referring to Gaurav Gogoi , who was appointed Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president in May last week. Live Events Sarma remarked, "They are not concerned with the change in the party's leadership, but this development has taken place in the last month." ''For the first time, there is so much foreign involvement in Assam politics in the run-up to the 2026 assembly elections'', he said. The CM said the central government has been apprised of the issue, calling it a matter of " national security ". PTI
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Assam district officials told to enforce law that bars sale of cattle meat 5km of temples: CM
GUWAHATI: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday said the district officials have been ordered to strictly comply with provisions of the Assam Cattle Preservation Act 2021 that prohibits the slaughter of cattle and sale of their meat within a five-kilometre radius of any Hindu religious place. 'It appears that one of the provisions of the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, which bans killing, slaughter, sale, purchase and consumption of cattle meat within a five-km radius of religious places, wasn't followed stringently ahead of Eid-al-Adha this year,' the chief minister told reporters. 'That's why we witnessed several instances of people trying to create communal tension by placing cow meat at temples and other religious places at Dhubri, Lakhipur, Lakhimpur and Hojai. Now we have directed all district authorities to ensure strict compliance with that provision so that such incidents don't take place,' he said, claiming that there was an effort by rival groups to spread communal tension in the state by throwing cattle meat at religious places and promoting hate on social media. Sarma alleged there was a concerted effort by some elements, both within the state and outside, to create communal tensions in Assam, especially through social media platforms. He said about 5,000-6,000 social media accounts had recently been activated that support a particular political party and spread hate. 'We have conducted forensic analysis of 2,093 Facebook accounts and found that nearly 700 are operated from Bangladesh, around 350 accounts have origins in Pakistan and around 500 in countries in the Middle East,' the CM said. 'Besides, there are many accounts from over 40 other countries. Most of these posts have content with hardcore Islamic fundamentalist ideals and express support for one particular political party and its leader from Assam,' he added. 'This is the first time we are witnessing such foreign involvement in Assam politics. We have informed the Centre about these accounts and their activities so that some countermeasures can be taken from a national security perspective,' he said.
India Gazette
2 hours ago
- General
- India Gazette
Assam gas leak; US experts have arrived, capping of well will start on Saturday June 21: Assam CM
Sivasagar (Assam) [India], June 20 (ANI): An expert team of USA has reached India and the process of capping of ONGC Rudrasagar Field which is struggling to check the gas leak and fire for last few days, will start from Saturday, June 21, said Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma in a press conference. According to ONGC, a new, safer, and more practical plan is now in motion to control the leak. A team of expert engineers from the United States have arrived at the site to assist in the operation. Full-scale work under the new strategy of capping the field is set to begin tomorrow. Earlier in the day, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also shared an update regarding the fire of ONGC Rudrasagar Field on his X handle, stating that nearly 50 per cent of the groundwork, including site preparation and equipment setup, has been completed and a team of experts from the US is about to reach the site to provide support. He posted, 'We've received an update from @ONGC on the ongoing operation at the RDS 147A well site in Sivasagar. After exploring multiple approaches with great effort and precision, ONGC is now advancing with a more practical and safer strategy to cap the leak. Close to 50% of the groundwork--such as site preparation and equipment mobilisation--has already been completed.' He added, 'A team of experts from the United States is reaching the site this evening to provide additional insights and support. Full-scale operations under the new plan are set to begin tomorrow. The Government of India and Government of Assam are monitoring the situation 24x7 and are fully committed to ensuring safety, restoring normalcy, and resolving the issue at the earliest.' So far, ONGC has tried several 'junk shot' methods using different materials and pressure techniques to stop the gas discharge. As the situation continues, an alternate route is being developed to allow safer movement to and from the well site. For safety, bunk houses and non-essential equipment are being removed from the area. Water blanketing--a method used to reduce fire risk--is ongoing around the clock. Air quality is being checked continuously, and all levels, including gas and dust particles, are reported to be within safe limits. ONGC, along with district officials, is also helping the families affected by the incident. The company has said it remains fully committed to protecting the safety of the local community and the environment. The Government of India and the Government of Assam are monitoring the situation closely and are working together to resolve the issue as quickly and safely as possible. (ANI)
NDTV
2 hours ago
- Politics
- NDTV
5,000 Foreign Facebook Accounts Suddenly Active In Assam: Himanta Sarma
Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, during a press conference held at Lok Sewa Bhawan in Dispur today, raised concerns about the sudden activation of thousands of suspicious Facebook accounts ahead of the upcoming elections in the state. Speaking to reporters, the Chief Minister stated, "Around 5,000 Facebook accounts have suddenly become active. These accounts are linked to a particular community, but most of them are operated from outside India." He claimed that these profiles predominantly share content related to Assam's elections and promote a particular political party, while refraining from commenting on national political figures like Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Rahul Gandhi. "They only post hardcore Islamic fundamentalist content, often mixing it with political narratives around Assam. When not posting about Assam, they share content related to Iran, Iraq, Palestine, or religious subjects like Umrah," Mr Sarma added. According to the Assam Chief Minister, many of these accounts are newly created and often list their location as IIT Guwahati to gain credibility. "We checked with IIT Guwahati and found no record of such individuals. Two of the exposed accounts were traced back to Bangladesh and Pakistan. It seems they use false identities and addresses to mislead the public," he said. The Chief Minister said his team has flagged these activities and that the individuals behind such accounts are "under the government's radar." He also hinted at a possible local connection in Guwahati, mentioning the GS Road and Kharghuli areas, though details remained unclear. "This has been going on for about a month now. I won't name anyone, but we are closely monitoring the situation. These people are connected through WhatsApp or Telegram groups. They become active especially after any controversial incident," he said.
