Beef row boils over ballot battle; CM warns of action, Kunki hits back

Guwahati: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma has dragged the issue of beef consumption into his election campaign against debutant and youngest contestant Kunki Chowdhury, fielded by Congress-led alliance for the Guwahati Central seat. The contest in this constituency is largely revolving around the single issue of Assamese versus non-Assamese identity.


The BJP’s rival candidate, Vijay Kumar Gupta (70), a Hindi-speaking veteran, claims he is as Assamese as anyone.


On Saturday night, Sarma said he would take action against Chowdhury’s parents under the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, for allegedly consuming beef and uploading a photo of it on social media.


Kunki (27), who has been given a ticket by Congress’s key ally Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), denied the allegations, calling them “fake and baseless” and accusing the CM of spreading misinformation.


Sarma told the media, “After the election, I will take action against her parents as per the Cattle Prevention Act. I will accept everything, but not eating beef.”


He alleged that “Kunki’s mother, Sujata Gurung Chowdhury, had shared posts related to beef consumption and made remarks offensive to certain sections, thereby hurting the sentiments of ‘Sanatani’ people”.


“Forget whether Kunki wins or loses... Let her say that her parents eat beef, she is a Sanatani Hindu and she has disowned them. If she says she is not with her parents, then I am with her,” Sarma added.


He further said, “There are satradhikars (head of satra functionaries) in Assam. Assam is Kamakhya temple. Which satradhikar will vote for her? They are talking about Gen Z. Does Gen Z eat beef? My head spins after hearing about eating beef.”


“What kind of courage is this? Are we Hindus dead? Will we eat beef in front of Kamakhya, Majuli and Batadrava? AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi should apologise,” he added.


Sarma claimed that even members of the ‘miya’ community had stopped consuming beef at his request and now eat buffalo meat instead.


“When I have stopped the Miyas from having beef, will I allow Kunki Chowdhury to eat it? No parent will be spared... I had issued shoot-at-sight orders for bringing beef during Eid in Dhubri,” Sarma asserted.


‘Miya’ is a pejorative term used for Bangladesh-origin migrant Muslims in Assam.


Sarma said those supporting beef consumption on social media should stop doing so and “not insult the Kamakhya temple and neo-Vaishnavite saint Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardeva”.


It’s worth mentioning that beef consumption is not illegal in Assam, but the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, bans cattle slaughter and sale of beef in areas where Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs are in the majority, and within a five-km radius of Hindu religious places.


Sarma also alleged that Kunki’s father had encroached on land. “His university is in my constituency. Nobody should support her without knowing the background,” he said.


Meanwhile, Kunki filed a police complaint over alleged deepfake defamatory videos circulated on social media about her family, alleging that “unidentified individuals or social media handles circulated manipulated videos using AI”. This followed Sarma’s claims about her mother’s food habits.


Cyber Police Station, Guwahati, OC Chandan Das said an FIR has been registered under relevant charges of the BNS, 2023, and investigation has started.


In a video posted on social media, Kunki thanked Sarma for making her a household name across the country. “A big thanks to the honourable CM. I learnt that during a media interaction, he made some allegations against my mother, which are completely untrue,” she said, adding that the CM’s remarks prove BJP has accepted defeat in Guwahati Central.