Himanta to file defamation case against Rahul over 'Adani' tweet

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said he will file a defamation case against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over a tweet that linked him to the Adani group.

Addressing a press conference in Guwahati, Sarma said the defamation case will be filed after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Guwahati on April 14.

"Whatever Rahul Gandhi tweeted, it's defamatory. We will respond after the PM leaves the state," he said.

"Definitely, a defamation case will be filed in Guwahati," he added.

Gandhi on Saturday took a swipe at some leaders who have quit the Congress in recent years and some of whom have joined the Bharatiya Janata Party as he kept up his offensive against the government over the Adani issue.

"They hide the truth, that's why they mislead everyday! The question remains the same -- whose Rs 20,000 crore benami money is in Adani's companies?" Gandhi asked in a tweet in Hindi, sharing an image with 'Adani' written as an acronym of sorts with letters of the names of the leaders.

He cited the names of Ghulam Nabi Azad, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Kiran Kumar Reddy and Anil K Antony in his tweet. After quitting the Congress, Azad formed his own party, while the rest joined the BJP. Scindia is now a Union minister and Sarma the chief minister of Assam.

Quoting Gandhi's tweet, Sarma had earlier tweeted, "It was our decency to have never asked you, on where have you concealed the proceeds of crime from the Bofors and National Herald scams. And how you allowed Ottavio Quattrocchi to escape the clutches of Indian justice multiple times. Any way we will meet in the Court of Law (sic)."

PM Modi will visit Guwahati to attend a host of programmes, including the state's attempt to create a record on Bihu with over 11,000 dancers and drummers.