Guwahati: BJP’s Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll candidate Devashish Sharma on Saturday lodged a police complaint against his opponent, AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, accusing him of calling him a “murderer” and “killer” during campaign speeches, three days before polling on Oct 6.Sharma approached Nagaon Sadar police station seeking registration of an FIR. He alleged that Ajmal’s remarks were aimed at communal polarisation and amounted to a violation of the model code of conduct.The dispute stems from the disappearance of Mumtaz Begum, a 43-year-old woman who was declared a foreigner by the Nagaon Foreigners’ Tribunal and sent across the border to Bangladesh on the intervening night of June 14.Opposition parties have claimed that another woman, Jahanara Begum of Bagariguri, met the same fate on the same night, and that neither woman has been heard from since.At an election meeting in Juria, Ajmal targeted Sharma, who had served as Nagaon district commissioner before joining the BJP. Ajmal alleged that Sharma was responsible for Mumtaz Begum’s disappearance, claiming she was “either pushed back across the border or killed in an encounter.”In his complaint, Sharma said he had never been indicted, prosecuted or convicted of murder or any other heinous offence.“The allegation is a calculated falsehood manufactured deliberately to destroy my moral character, social standing, and political integrity during an active election,” Sharma said in the complaint.Sharma also petitioned the returning officer and the election commission, seeking an order barring Ajmal from public meetings, media interactions and social media posts for the rest of the campaign. He also asked the Election Commission’s Cyber Nodal Agency to have the allegedly offensive clips taken down.Police confirmed receipt of the complaint and said the matter was under investigation.
