Willing to accept any punishment if there is evidence of wife receiving money from Centre: Himanta

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said he was willing to accept any punishment, including retirement from public life, if there is any evidence that his wife has received or claimed any amount from the government of India.

''I want to emphasise again that neither my wife, nor the company she is associated with, has received or claimed any amount from the government of India. If anyone can provide evidence, I am willing to accept any punishment including retirement from public life," the chief minister posted on 'X' in reply to a post by the Congress deputy leader in Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi.

Gogoi and Sarma have been locked in a war of words on 'X' since Wednesday when the Congress leader posted a reply by the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, who had responded to a question in the Lok Sabha by Assam BJP MP Pallab Lochan Das on March 22, 2023.

''Is Hon’ble Chief Minister complaining to Union Minister Piyush Goyal? He is saying Goyal has only approved the grant to the wife of Sarma but has not released the funds. How many more BJP politicians have used the PMKSY scheme to enrich their families?'', Gogoi said.