A major political controversy has erupted after Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge questioned the “talent pool” in Assam and Gujarat, provoking a fiery response from Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and sparking a heated war of words between the Congress and the BJP.
Speaking at a public event, Priyank Kharge, Karnataka’s Minister for Rural Development and IT/BT, alleged that the Central government was exerting pressure on semiconductor companies that wished to invest in Bengaluru, urging them instead to set up units in Gujarat and Assam.
“Why are semiconductor industries going to Assam and Gujarat when they actually want to come to Bengaluru? What is there in Gujarat? Is there talent there? What is there in Assam? Is there talent there?” Kharge reportedly said, triggering sharp political reactions.
Reacting strongly, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accused Kharge of insulting the people of Assam. “Son of INC President, Priyank Kharge, has insulted Assam’s youth and Assam Congress doesn’t even dare to condemn him. He is a first-class idiot,” Sarma wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Sarma later told reporters that his government was exploring legal action against Kharge for “demeaning” the youth of Assam. “We might file a case against him because his statement is an insult to Assamese youth,” the Assam CM said.
Countering the allegations, Priyank Kharge hit back, accusing the BJP and Sarma of “twisting his statement for political advantage.” “My statement was clear — I said semiconductor firms were being pressured to go to Gujarat and Assam even though they preferred Karnataka for its strong engineering ecosystem,” he wrote on X.
Kharge further took aim at the Assam government’s record, alleging that the state “ranks among the bottom five in health, education, and economic growth” and that its youth had been “left without jobs or opportunities under BJP rule.” “The only thing Mr. Sarma has managed to grow is his own wealth,” Kharge added, calling the Assam CM a “third-rate crook.”
The BJP Assam Pradesh unit also joined the row, mocking Kharge as a “Teddy Boy” in a social media post. “Hello Teddy Boy, writing long essays on X doesn’t make you a semiconductor expert. Maybe take a look at your own district, which still tops the chart of poverty in South India,” the BJP wrote.
