Cong leader Gaurav Gogoi seeks Union Minister's intervention over Rs 10 cr subsidy scam involving Assam CM's wife

In a letter dashed off to Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, Deputy leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha and senior Congress functionary Gaurav Gogoi appealed for his intervention in the matter so that the real facts come out in the open.

New Delhi:Deputy leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha and senior Congress functionary, Gaurav Gogoi, on Monday, appealed to the Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, for his personal intervention into the Rs 10 crore subsidy "scam" involving Rinki Bhuyan, wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

In a letter dashed to Goyal, Gogoi appealed for his intervention in the matter so that the real facts come out in the open. "It is apparent from your reply in the Lok Sabha that the list of beneficiaries on the website of the ministry of food processing industry that Rs 10 crore has been approved in the name of M/S Pride Entertainment Private Limited," Gogoi said in his letter. "However, the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Assam, whose family members own and control the said entity, has denied receiving or claiming any amount from the government of India. Therefore, for the interest of public transparency, I humbly request your kind intervention in the matter so that the real facts come out in the open," said Gogoi in his letter a copy of which is available with ETV Bharat.

"I write this to you to draw your kind attention to the issue of allocation of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY) subsidy, implemented by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India to the family member of Assam Chief Minster," Gogoi said. It has come to notice that the Ministry of Food Processing under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY) and Scheme for Creation of Infrastructure for Agro Clusters has allocated an amount of Rs 10 crore to M/S Pride East Entertainment Private Limited, the promoter of which is Riniki Bhuyan Sharma, the wife of Hon’ble Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, said Gogoi.

Gogoi said that on March 22, 2023, the office of the Minister of Commerce and Industry, while replying to questions in Lok Sabha as to whether the government has taken the initiative to invest in Assam in order to support the promotion of industries, has given a list of Food Processing Projects supported under the component of PMKSY in the north-eastern states as on January 31, 2022 vis a vis the state of Assam.

"In Serial number seven (7) of the list, the name of M/S Pride East Entertainment Private Limited has been mentioned. Pertinently, the amount approved (which is grant-in-aid) is mentioned as Rs 10,00,00,000. The list of beneficiaries can also be found on the website of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries," Gogoi added. Gogoi said that in his opinion established media channels that want to venture into a new business should seek credit from the financial sector.

"Government grants must be given to the genuine and needy beneficiaries who have displayed the expertise to utilize the tax-payers money in the proper manner," he said. Significantly, the revelation involving Riniki Bhuyan Sarma-owned M/S Pride East Entertainment Private Limited taking a subsidy from the central government has given a strong point to the Opposition Congress both at the center and state to grill the ruling BJP.

"The Chief Minister may deny the fact that neither his wife nor her company took any subsidy. On the contrary, Union Minister Piyush Goyal gave a statement over such a grant in aid in the Parliament. How can he (Himanta Biswa Sarma) deny the central government statement given in the Parliament," said Congress MP in the Lok Sabha Abdul Khaleque.

It is worth mentioning that M/S Pride East Entertainment Private Limited runs several print and other media houses in Assam and the Northeast. As per a statement from the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, M/S Pride East Entertainment Private Limited has expanded its business interests to silk production and food processing among others.

All the plots, the company purchased in Assam's Nagaon district, were categorized as agricultural land which was later changed to industrial land. The M/S Pride East Entertainment Private Limited has been planning to open a food processing plant in Nagaon.