As Congress leader Pawan Khera reached the Crime Branch Police Station in Guwahati on Thursday, Himanta Biswa Sarma took an apparent dig at him by remarking that “Assam’s peda tastes good.” The comment came while the Assam Chief Minister was visiting the Kamakhya Temple to offer prayers to Goddess Kamakhya. Addressing reporters during the visit, Sarma expressed optimism about Assam’s future and said he believed the state would continue progressing over the next five years with the blessings of the deity.

Khera appeared before the Crime Branch in connection with a passport-related controversy involving the Chief Minister’s wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma. Speaking to the media outside the police station, Khera stated that he was fully cooperating with the investigation and that the probe was ongoing.

The dispute began after Khera alleged during an April press conference that Riniki Bhuyan Sarma possessed passports from India, the UAE, and Egypt, besides owning luxury properties in Dubai and a company in Wyoming, United States. The Sarma family rejected the accusations, claiming the documents circulated online were fabricated using AI tools and spread through Pakistani social media networks.

Responding strongly to the allegations earlier, CM Sarma criticized the Congress leader and warned of strict action. He claimed Assam Police was capable of tracing individuals from anywhere and suggested that the matter could eventually reach Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Sarma also alleged that Khera had left Delhi for Hyderabad after police searches at his residence, adding that the law would take its course.