3 min readGuwahatiUpdated: Apr 12, 2026 06:07 PM IST
Assam Assembly election candidate Kunki Chowdhury was summoned to the Pan Bazar police station in Guwahati on Sunday for questioning in a case registered against her campaign team for alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
Hours after polling closed for the Assembly election on Thursday, the Assam Police had detained three members of her campaign team in connection with the case. Chowdhury is Congress-ally Assam Jatiya Parishad’s candidate from the Guwahati Central constituency. The 27-year-old is the youngest candidate in the fray in the Assam election. She has denied the allegations.
While she had drawn widespread attention as a young poll debutant going up against 70-year-old BJP candidate Vijay Gupta in the Guwahati Central contest, she particularly grabbed headlines when she and her family became the subject of repeated attacks by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Sarma has claimed that her family “insulted Hindus” by purportedly eating beef and sharing photos on social media, and that her mother “openly supported” Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam on social media.
On Saturday, Chowdhury was issued a summons to the Pan Bazar police station for questioning in the case, which has been registered under sections of the BNS pertaining to obstruction of order issued by a public servant and punishment for undue influence or personation during an election, as well as violation of the Representation of the People Act.
Central Guwahati DCP Shambhavi Mishra had told The Indian Express that the case was registered on the basis of a complaint that the three members who were detained are originally from Haryana and were present in the constituency in violation of a rule that political functionaries and workers who have been brought from outside the constituency should leave the constituency 48 hours before polling. Regarding Chowdhury herself, the DCP had said, “The allegation is that she was still in campaigning mode yesterday (on polling day), and other violations like taking her PSO to polling station areas.”
Following her questioning at the police station on Sunday, Chowdhury said, “There has been an FIR lodged on false allegations, so I am happy that I was called so that I could come and give my statement. I have full belief in the system and that the investigation will be done properly.”
Assam Jatiya Parishad chief Lurinjyoti Gogoi called the case and summons issued to Chowdhury “administrative pressure” on a candidate.
Story continues below this ad
“[Chief Minister] Himanta Biswa Sharma and the BJP are starting to use the administration and police for their political gains. This is a dangerous sign for the democratic system. In Assam, the BJP wants to counter the voice of the Opposition through intimidation, repression and thuggery… The BJP, which is afraid of the rise and the possibility of victory of the AJP candidate in the Central Guwahati constituency, has now resorted to the politics of intimidation. But it is equally true that intimidation cannot mask the truth forever. We want to send a clear message to brave young women like Kunki Chowdhury that you are not alone. Thousands of democratically minded people in Assam are with Kunki Chowdhury,” he said.
