Assam Assembly: House rocked on alleged subsidy, Company CMD denies allegation

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Assam Legislative Assembly witnessed an unruly situation today over the alleged Rs 10-crore subsidy claim by Pride East Entertainments Private Ltd. (PEEPL) under the PM Kisan Sampada Yojana. To bring the situation under control, the Speaker had to adjourn the house twice.

The Congress legislators raised the issue after the Question Hour and moved a motion seeking adjournment of the House to discuss the matter. The Speaker said that since it is a private subject, he cannot accept the motion according to the rules of the House. The Congress members then rushed to the well with placards and started shouting slogans, leading the Speaker to adjourn the House for 15 minutes.

When the House resumed, the Congress MLAs raised their demand again to adjourn the House. They rushed to the well and started shouting slogans, compelling the Speaker to adjourn the House for ten minutes. When the House resumed, the Congress MLAs created the same situation and staged a walkout.

Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi raised the issue on social media a few days ago. The Congress MP alleged that the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry approved Rs 10 crore as grants in aid to Pride East Entertainments Private Ltd. for a food processing unit. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma refuted the allegation and said that the company had not received any subsidy from the government of India. He wrote on X on Wednesday, "I would like to clarify that neither my wife nor the company she is associated with has ever received any financial subsidy from the Government of India. If anyone can provide evidence to the contrary, I'm willing to accept any punishment, including retirement from public life"

Daring Gaurav Gogoi, the Chief Minister, wrote on X today, "I'm confident that we will meet in court, and once again, I will be able to prove my point. I have successfully done so in 2016 and 2021, and I'm determined to do it again, both in people's court and in a court of law".

In a statement, Pride East Entertainments Private Ltd. CMD Riniki Bhuyan said, "Pride East Entertainments Private Ltd. is an independent entity in existence since 2006 with business interests in various sectors. It is a law-abiding company, with all its financial records in the public domain. With a long and successful business track record, Pride East Entertainments Private Ltd., like any other qualifying enterprise, is eligible to participate in government-supported programmes and incentive schemes. However, in the present case pertaining to the PM Kisan Sampada Scheme, Pride East Entertainments Private Ltd. has neither claimed nor received a single paisa of government subsidy, despite meeting all the eligibility criteria. This is nothing but an attack to malign and defame a 17-year-old Assamese enterprise, which has adhered to every aspect of the law and is headed by a woman entrepreneur. To protect the reputation of our hard-working employees from this slanderous campaign of Sri Gaurav Gogoi, Member of Parliament, I'm hereby compelled to file a case of defamation with Rs 10 crore in damages against him in the court of law."

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