AAP files police complaint against Assam CM; demanding probe on PPE Kit Corruption

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday filed a complaint against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his wife Riniki Bhuyan with Business partners and the officials of National Health Mission (Assam). Workers of Aam Aadmi Party has requested Assam Police to take cognizance of the crime of "criminal misappropriation by public servant", "criminal breach of trust" and "corruption" by Chief Minister of Assam, Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma; his wife and Owner of JCB Industries Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, his son Sri Nandil Biswa Sarma, Agile Associates Owner Sri Rajib Bora, GRD Pharmaceuticals and Meditime Healthcare Owner Ghanshyam Dhenuka along with other unknown persons and accomplices of Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma.

AAP workers also gave details of media reports regarding the Covid corruption of Chief Minister’s family. “Recently The Wire news media organisation along with Guwahati based news portal The Cross Current had filed a bunch of RTI Petitions to Assam Government, specifically the Health Department whereby the National Health Mission Assam(under Health Ministry) gave official Oferent documentation that revealed widespread corruption, criminal misappropriation of Public Fund his family members and business partners of his family members in Government business of procuring Kits and Sanitizers at an highly inflated rates causing undue loss to public exchequers and resulting in fair price rise of health safety garments and sanitizers in the state of Assam causing direct samese people”.

“Mr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, who was in 2020 the Health Minister of Assam through his own tweet claimed that Government Assam under his initiative, had procured 50,000 PPE Kits from China under emergency requirement without open tender process. But the National Health Mission Assam later stated that it had procured no such PPE kits and that such kits were procured by private contractors who supplied the same to Government of Assam at rates declared through purchase orders. Later, the Government stopped this procurement from China as DRDO's (Defence Research and Development Organisation's) Gwalior laboratory declared the kits substandard and not fit for usage by health professionals. In this regard, The Wire came out with a detailed report whose web address is enclosed herewith:

https://thewire.in/government/exclusive-himanta-biswa-sarmas-family-associate-lucrative-ppe-order-rti

https://thewire.in/government/assam-ppe-kit-orders himanta-biswa-sarma-story

https://thewire.in/government/assam-himanta-biswa-sarma-ppe-kits-china

https://thewire.in/government/himanta-biswa-sarma-wife-ppe-firm

https://thewire.in/government/assam-cm-wifes-response-to-the-wire-report-fails-to-address-key-points

https://thewire.in/government/assam-himanta-biswa-sarma-grd-pharmaceuticals

“As such PPE kits which were procured at a price of Rs 600 on 18 March 2020 were being procured at Rs 990 from JCB Industries (Owner Smt. Riniki Bhuyan Sarma) on 18th March 2020(same day) itself as revealed by National Health Mission Letter No. NHM-18012/3/2020-PROC-NHM/ECF/137250/SPO-12300. The same purchase order to Smt. Riniki Bhuyan's JCB Industries was later cancelled by National Health Mission, Assam vide Letter No. NHM-18012/3/2020-PROC-NHM/ECF/137250/328 dated 06/04/2022 as Smt. Riniki Bhuyan Sharma could only supply 1485 nos out of 5000 kits and failed to supply the rest. This clearly states that Mr. Himanta Biswa Sarma had given a purchase order as Health Minister of Assam to his wife; which he cancelled partially on a later date as she could not deliver the Order as promised. This transaction is direct violation of Code of Conduct for Ministers (Government of India Circular) along with public servants unlawfully engaging in trade or unlawfully buying or bidding for property (through their spouse or relatives)”.

"Further, it is stated that Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma, allowed a blacklisted Director Sri Rajib Bora owned Agile Association 10 April 2020; who was blacklisted by the same Sarbananda Sonowal Government in which Mr. Himanta Biswa Sarma was himself the Minister; to procure PPE Kits at a price of Rs 2,205 l.e. at 4 times the price of initial procurement by other suppliers. Mr. Rajib Bora was blacklisted for involvement in an advertisement scam that caused a loss of Rs 33 crore to the Directorate of Information and Public Relations (DIPR). Mr. Rajib Bora and his wife Smt. Anjana Bora (who was business partner of Smt. Riniki Bhuyan Sarma in Digitech Media and Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.) got anticipatory bail from the Supreme Court in November 2017. In September 2020, the supplementary chargesheet in the case had named the both Rajib Bora and Anjana Bora as accused in the case and yet Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma, in his capacity as the Minister of Health of Government of Assam allowed a blacklisted company to procure essentials at highly inflated rates where the company owners were known past business associate of his wife Smt. Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, giving them undue favour though after being blacklisted”.

“Further, Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma in his capacity as the Health Minister authorised Meditime Healthcare and GRD Pharmaceuticals to urgently procure PPE kits at the highest rate and the highest number of PPE kit procurement as stated by National Health Mission official RTI reply. Both these companies are owned by Sri Ghanshyam Dhanuka. Ghanshyam Dhanuka's father Ashok Dhanuka is a director of the RBS Realtors (now Vasistha Realtors) in which Himanta Biswa Sarma's son Nandil Biswa Sarma is currently a majority shareholder. Meditime Healthcare and GRD Pharmaceuticals were regular suppliers of Assam State Health Department in the past though Dhanuka family and Himanta Biswa Sarma's family had business relations where his son was majority shareholder”.

“Also Mr. Ghanshyam Dhanuka in his monopoly position as the first company producing alcohol based hand sanitizer since 2012 in Northeast, abused the Covid situation to profiteer from scarcity of hand sanitizers. The Assam government paid Rs 25 (Rs 37 with GST) to another firm for each 200-ml bottle of sanitiser it ordered. While to GRD Pharmaceuticals(Dhanuka owned), it paid Rs 231 for every 500-ml bottle and Rs 100.30 for every 100-ml bottle - Rs 137 and Rs 81 more per bottle respectively if the former firm's rates were to be applied. Between March 11, 2020, and May 29, 2020, GRD Pharmaceuticals was issued seven orders for delivering 500-ml and 100-ml bottles of sanitisers. This made it one of the biggest suppliers of the product to the state health department during the pandemic”.

“The Wire in its report found out that Mr. Ghanshyam Dhanuka had been associated with Shell Companies: out of Kolkata namely Oleander Manufacturers and Credit Pvt Ltd, Dingo Commodeal Pvt. Ltd; Echolac Vinimay Pvt Ltd, Elegance Trade and Holdings Pvt Ltd, Radiant Merchandise Pvt Ltd and Slow and Sound Electronics Pvt Ltd. In which both the Ghanshyam Dhanuka family and Himanta Biswa Sarma Family had business interests and were involved in some sort of financial transaction”.

“In this regard, we the members of Aam Aadmi Party Assam in representation of the Assamese people would request your humble authority to kindly register a criminal case against Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma, Smt. Riniki Bhuyan Sharma, Sri Ghanshyam Dhanuka, Sri Rajib Bora and other unknown persons who were involved in this PPE Kit Scam, Sanitizer Scam, Benami Company Scam to undertake undue advantage of Covid situation in Assam and profit illegally from urgent procurement of Government of Assam whereby they co-conspired and hatched a conspiracy to undertake corrupt practices as defined by the laws of India and aide Minister Sri Himanta Biswa Sarma to misappropriate funds from the Government of Assam under his Health Ministry at the time of incident in March-April 2020. Further you are requested to investigate further into the workings of the Companies mentioned above including the Directors, Proprietors, Owners and past shareholders to unlatch the larger conspiracy. For this act, we the people of Assam would be always obliged to you in the interest of Justice”.