Guwahati: The Assam unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has expelled social media co-convener Ron Vikas Gaurav from the party. Party sources said on Wednesday that Gaurav was responsible for posting a controversial artificial-intelligence (AI)-generated video on the party’s official X account.
The video, shared on February 7 and later deleted following political protests, showed Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma pointing a gun at members of the Bengali-origin Muslim community. According to a police complaint filed by the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), the clip had captions such as “point-blank shot,” “foreigner-free Assam,” and “why didn’t you go to Pakistan?”
In an FIR lodged at the Dispur police station, Congress MLAs Sibamoni Bora and Diganta Barman described the content as “highly inflammatory and communal” and said it could disturb social harmony. The video reportedly showed Sarma targeting members of the Muslim community.
The clip was widely criticized by opposition parties. The Congress, CPI(M), CPI, and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi, who filed a complaint in Hyderabad, called it “inflammatory” and “genocidal hate speech,” demanding legal action and accountability.
Responding to the controversy, the Assam BJP removed the video and clarified that it was “unauthorized” and “mishandled by an inattentive party worker.” State BJP chief Dilip Saikia said the party did not intend to target Muslims and emphasized that content with sensitive political overtones requires prior approval. He said the co-convener is only authorized to post routine content such as party announcements or congratulations. He added, “It was mishandled by an inattentive and unauthorized person; the party took notice of it, and we had the video deleted.”
The party also stated that the content was created and posted by volunteers, and no private agency was involved. State BJP social media in-charge Ranjib Sarma oversees sensitive postings, and any material related to the Chief Minister requires prior approval from him or the Chief Minister’s office.
The Assam Chief Minister has denied prior knowledge of the video and reiterated his political views. He has also filed a defamation suit of ₹500 crore against Congress leaders for various allegations.
