Jungle Raj in Assam: Himanta Biswa Sarma steeped in corruption, ‘land grabs’, tea garden buyouts

Just hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Assam for the Advantage Assam 2.0 — Investment and Infrastructure Summit 2025, the Congress held a press conference with 'revelations' on the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led BJP government in the state, raising serious allegations of corruption, land grabs, and collusion with militants.

The accusations not only put Sarma on the defensive but also challenge the BJP’s claims of governance and development in Assam.

A file of Congress leaders lined up to question whether Modi would take action against what they termed the “jungle raj” in Assam, now that Manipur has finally come under President's Rule instead of BJP's.

This comes at a time when the BJP is attempting to showcase Assam as an investment-friendly state, aiming to attract national and international businesses. 

Leading the charge, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi raised pointed questions about the chief minister’s family, particularly regarding the legality of his wife’s Vani Green Resort, which is allegedly situated in a protected elephant corridor. The issue of environmental degradation facilitated by political patronage has been a growing concern, and the Congress appears to be capitalising on public sentiment over this.

“Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife is running Vani Green Resort in an elephant corridor; has she taken permission? If not, will Modi take action?” Gogoi asked.

"PM Modi says, 'Neither will I eat [bribes], nor will I let others eat,' but in Assam, the CM's family has eaten up lands in every district," he added.

He also accused Sarma and BJP leader Ram Madhav of seeking the support of Manipuri militants to further their political and business interests in the state — a charge that, if proven, could have serious implications given the fragile situation in the region, already riven with ethnic strife and security issues over the Manipur unrest and more (not to mention an attack on a Congress MP in broad daylight in the presence of police).

Congress' Assam in-charge Jitendra Singh accused Sarma of using his political clout to amass significant wealth and assets, dubbing him a “political leader turned business tycoon”.

He alleged that Sarma and his associates have acquired massive land holdings, including in tribal areas where land purchases are restricted.

“The chief minister of Assam owns tea gardens, news portals, international schools, a McDonald's outlet, and vast lands in Majuli, Kamrup, Guwahati, Nagaon, Golaghat. How did he amass such wealth? What magic lamp did Narendra Modi give to Himanta Biswa Sarma that he became a business mogul overnight?” Singh asked.

He further questioned whether investigative agencies such as the ED and CBI, often accused of targeting opposition leaders, were probing these alleged irregularities within the BJP ranks.

The Congress also accused the BJP of attempting to dismantle Assam’s tea plantation industry, a sector that is not just the backbone of the state’s economy but also a cultural identity. The party alleged that tea garden owners were being coerced into selling their estates, leading to the consolidation of Assam’s tea industry in the hands of a few politically connected individuals.

“Tea garden owners in Assam are being threatened, forced to sell their estates. Big companies have left Assam, and CM’s associates are now taking over the tea gardens,” the Congress alleged.

The party also reminded Modi of his 2014 election promise to raise the daily wage of Assam’s 11 lakh tea workers to Rs 351, contrasting it with the present reality where wages remain between Rs 220 and Rs 250.

“Why did Modi fail to keep his word?” Congress asked, highlighting the BJP’s failure to deliver on key economic promises to Assam’s working class.

Accusing the Sarma government of fostering lawlessness, Assam Congress president Bhupen K. Bora alleged that even though sitting Congress MP Rakibul Hussain was recently attacked in broad daylight in a public place, yet no arrests were made, showcasing the selective inaction of law enforcement.

“1,600 government schools have been shut down in Assam in the last three years, but liquor shops are booming. Assam now has the highest number of liquor shops in the entire country,” Bora claimed, in an apparent attack on the BJP’s moral positioning in governance.

In adition, the Congress has accused the Sarma government of taking Rs 2,000 crore in loans every month, questioning where the funds were being utilised and alleging that state resources were being funnelled into personal luxuries rather than public welfare.

Congress further accused the BJP of facilitating illegal mining, alleging that while rat-hole mining is banned across India due to its devastating environmental and human costs, the practice continues unchecked in Assam.

“Who is running illegal mining operations in Assam? Are CM’s associates involved? Are ministers in his cabinet profiting from it?” the party questioned, suggesting that Assam’s natural resources were being exploited under BJP rule.

Declaring that the BJP’s alleged police intimidation tactics would not silence them, Congress leaders vowed to keep questioning the government until the 2026 Assembly elections.

“They think they can scare us into silence, but they are mistaken. We will ask questions every day. And after the elections, they will get the peace they seek — because they will be sitting in the opposition,” Congress warned.

The timing of these allegations, just before Modi’s Assam visit, makes it clear that the opposition is seeking to corner the BJP on governance issues. The question remains whether the Modi–Sarma dispensation will address these allegations head-on or attempt to sidestep them?

Earlier, the BJP went after MP Gaurav Gogoi — who won from Sarma's own Jorhat constituency — accusing him of facilitating ‘foreign interests’, with his wife being a British citizen as ‘proof’ of him being a traitor to the nation.

With the 2026 Assam elections on the horizon, this battle of narratives is only beginning.