Meet the complainants behind the Assam FIRs against journalists

In Assam, three recent FIRs have turned the spotlight on a pattern: journalists critical of the government hauled up under a new sedition-style law. There’s another trend – the complainants in at least two of the FIRs ostensibly had links to the BJP or the RSS student wing ABVP.

The first FIR was filed on May 9 at the Guwahati Crime Branch by local resident Biju Verma. It named The Wire’s founding editor Siddharth Varadarajan, consulting editor Karan Thapar, commentator Najam Sethi, journalist Ashutosh Bhardwaj, and the late J&K governor Satya Pal Malik. The FIR remained out of view until the Crime Branch issued summons in the matter. These summons had emerged days later even though they were dated August 12 – the same day the Supreme Court granted The Wire protection from coercive action in a second FIR. 

That second case had been filed at Morigaon police station on July 11 against Varadarajan, based on a complaint by one Partha Pratim Patar.

A third FIR followed on August 21, this time against YouTuber Abhisar Sharma, after a complaint by Alok Baruah.

All the FIRs invoked BNS section 152 – seen as a rebranded version of the outdated sedition law – among other charges.

Newslaundry reviewed the profiles of the complainants. 

Complainant#1: Biju Verma

The earliest of the three FIRs was filed on May 9 by Biju Verma, a resident of Guwahati. 

This FIR concerns the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu & Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians, mostly tourists. Verma alleged that in the wake of the tragedy, The Wire and certain journalists spread content that undermined India’s sovereignty and security, circulated unverified remarks blaming the Indian state, and risked provoking communal disharmony and public disorder.

Specific content cited includes a video interview titled “Pak terrorists are smarter than us” (a quote the outlet attributed to former R&AW chief AS Dulat) and denying normalcy in Kashmir, a satire titled “Five asanas Modi has perfected to deflect and distract from real issues,” and reports suggesting that a Rafale jet had been downed by Pakistan.

“Several more articles, such as ‘The real test is thwarting the invitation to civil war,’ ‘Pahalgam and the normalisation of communal hate,’ and ‘How media fuels communal hate’, deliberately conflate the state’s legitimate national security response with communal bias, all while ignoring the sectarian nature of the attack where victims were singled out based on religion. Equally disturbing is the insinuation in articles like ‘Pahalgam exposes deep fault lines in India’s security apparatus’ that national defence failures stem not from terrorism, but from political motives, thereby eroding confidence in core institutions.”

According to the FIR, these publications eroded public confidence in the government and armed forces, weakened national morale, and emboldened hostile powers.

Those named in the case include Siddharth Varadarajan, Karan Thapar, Najam Sethi, Ashutosh Bhardwaj, former J&K governor Satya Pal Malik, and other unidentified persons.

The Supreme Court has granted Varadarajan and Thapar interim protection from arrest in this case, days after it granted similar protection in the other case.

Complainant#2: Partha Pratim Patar

On July 11, the Morigaon police registered an FIR under BNS Section 152 against Siddharth Varadarajan and The Wire over a story published on June 28 regarding the Indian defence attaché’s statement about the loss of Indian aircraft in “Operation Sindoor.”

The complainant, Partha Pratim Patar, is a lawyer whose Facebook profile shows he is an active BJP functionary. He describes himself as president of the BJP’s ST Morcha in Morigaon district, co-coordinator of Booth Sashaktikaran for Morigaon assembly and Nagaon Lok Sabha constituencies, and convenor of the BJP’s “Khel Kush” initiative in Morigaon.

His social media is filled with posts praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, and local BJP leaders. In a recent post, he shared photos from a “Tiranga March” commemorating the success of Operation Sindoor, crediting Modi’s leadership and the armed forces.

He has also posted photos of a gamusa (scarf) gifted by CM Himanta Biswa Sarma during Bihu, thanking the chief minister for the gesture.

Complainant#3: Alok Baruah

The August 21 FIR against YouTuber Abhisar Sharma was filed by Alok Baruah, born in 2002. Baruah is reportedly associated with the ABVP.

A photograph shows Baruah with BJP MP and current Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia. His social media accounts, however, are no longer active.

The complaint alleged that Sharma accused Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of indulging in communal politics, with “malicious intent to tarnish the image of elected governments”. Baruah claimed the remarks were capable of provoking communal sentiments, creating distrust in governance, and spreading enmity between religious groups.

In a social media post, Sharma had called the FIR “baseless” and said it would be challenged legally.

BJP, ABVP distance themselves

Newslaundry reached out to the BJP’s Assam vice-president Aparajita Bhuyan, who said “there is no such instruction from the party to file any FIR against anyone”. “However, anybody can file a complaint in their personal capacity regardless of their political affiliation. Rest law will take its own course.”

Reached for comment, the ABVP’s state unit said Baruah is no longer a member of the organisation and was part of it when he was a student. 

Speaking to Newslaundry, Verma said he could not speak “right now” as he has “some serious medical condition”. However, he denied any connection with the BJP or any political party. 

Patar refused to comment immediately, saying that he was “busy”.

Calls to Baruah remained unanswered.

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