Riniki Bhuyan Sarma
Riniki Bhuyan Sharma is an Indian politician and businesswoman. She is the wife of Himanta Biswa Sarma, the current chief minister of Assam and managing director of Pride East Entertainment, the largest media house of Assam.
Early life
She was born on 31 July 1973, in Guwahati. She comes from a notable family, with her father, Jadav Chandra Bhuyan, being a well-known industrialist. Riniki's early education took place in Guwahati, where she attended St. Mary's High School before moving on to Cotton College, where she graduated with a degree in Political Science. Following her undergraduate studies, she pursued a law degree at Government Law College in Guwahati.Career
She is the Chairperson and Managing Director of Pride East Entertainments, which is a parent company of several Assamese channels. It includes, two news channels, three entertainment channels and one Assamese News paper.Recently, Pride East Entertainments Pvt. Ltd., headed by Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, successfully acquired the digital news platform Time8.
Personal life
She is married to Himanta Biswa Sarma, Assam's current Chief Minister. They met as students while studying in Cotton College, and Himanta shared his ambition of becoming Chief Minister with her. They have two children: a son, Nandil Biswa Sarma, and a daughter, Sukanya Sarma.Controversy
In September 2023, Congress alleged that Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, through her company M/s Pride East Entertainments Private Limited, had allegedly obtained a grant of ₹10 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana.Riniki Bhuyan Sarma denied the allegations, claiming that her company had neither applied for nor received any subsidies, even though it was eligible. She also filed a ₹10 crore defamation lawsuit against Gaurav Gogoi, accusing him of running a "slanderous campaign" against her business.