[Assam] ‘Gogoi family has Rs 18-crore property in US’

[Chan Mahanta]

>mention of the address as a place of residence for graduate studies.

*** Very likely! 

Also, the various incomes shown for the daughter and son-in-law could be explained by 
income at the time for applying fo a loan. Over a number of years they would change.







On Jan 9, 2011, at 1:25 PM, amlan saha wrote:

> Cannot speak for the other addresses in the article but Albany Street,
> Cambridge, MA is mostly MIT property (I live in Cambridge); looks to me like
> a cut and paste job from some associated (with his son-in-law or daughter?)
> mention of the address as a place of residence for graduate studies?
> 
> 
> On Sun, Jan 9, 2011 at 1:56 PM, Chan Mahanta <cmahanta at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> I did a little quick math and the total value of these houses , approx. 18
>> crore rupees, is really a puny
>> amount by local standards, as far as housing value goes, $ 500,000 or so. A
>> 3 BR. condominium
>> like the one at Mountain View CA, itself would be almost 1.5 to 2 times the
>> combined value of
>> the three ( or is it four) houses/condos's reported value ( $ 600,000 to $
>> 1,000,000).
>> 
>> So, for one thing, the reported values mean little. For another, that CM
>> Gogoi's son-in-law,
>> from published accounts a Google executive, probably makes enough on HIS
>> OWN to be able to
>> afford  a $ 1,000,000 loan on one ( or a collection of houses) described
>> here. People buy houses
>> with long-term loans here, not with hard cash.
>> 
>> Therefore, the value of the houses described could NOT be construed to
>> point to the notion
>> of assets disproportionate to the son-in-law's assets, leading to  casting
>> aspersions on CM Gogoi
>> or his wife being the financiers, from legitimate or corrupt sources.
>> 
>> That may be the good news for CM Gogoi and his wife.
>> 
>> The bad news probably lies elsewhere: the Ownership of the houses. Who
>> is/are the Owners of these
>> houses? The daughter and the son-in-law? The CM or his wife?
>> 
>> Why that matters are:
>> 
>> A: The son-in-law and the daughter are US residents, if not citizens. He
>> probably earns enough, and she may too,
>> to add to a tidy amount to be able to get a pretty good sized loan for a
>> house in a high market value area like
>> Mountatin View, California and Cambridge, MA ( home to MIT and Harvard
>> etc.). But not so for  foreigners, like
>> Tarun Gogoi or his wife, UNLESS they also have US Permanent Resident Visas
>> ( Green Cards. They could
>> however. That would be interesting to know if they do. Somebody should ask
>> the CM that question.
>> 
>> B: If they are not green-card holders, they probably bought them for cash.
>> There is no reason for the son-in-law or
>> daughter to purchase houses, on loan, for TG or his wife.  If any of these
>> houses were bought with cash ( not on loan), that
>> will be a good indication that someone other than the son-in-law or the
>> daughter provided the cash. Be it the CM , or his wife,
>> or some Hawala trader or some business owner or whoever.
>> 
>> This could be easily verified from publicly available info. The
>> lien-holders' names will be on the Titles of these houses
>> if they are purchased with bank loans.
>> 
>> 
>> Finally, EVEN if these houses were bought for cash and  from corrupt
>> sources, the amounts are small fry, compared to those
>> talked about in reference to Himanta Sarma for one. I am sure there are
>> others. In that I agree with MM's view:
>> 
>>       "See how large hearted he is!
>>       He allows his henchman to take 4000Crores  and he  keeps only 18
>> crores  as small tips."
>> 
>> 
>> Just kidding!
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> On Jan 8, 2011, at 11:52 PM, Nava Thakuria wrote:
>> 
>>> 
>>> Gogoi involved in embezzlement: KMSS
>>> 
>>> GUWAHATI, Jan 8 – Peasant organisation Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti today
>>> alleged that Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi is involved in embezzling the
>> public
>>> money of the State and part of the money laundered by him has been
>> siphoned off
>>> to the US to procure property there in the names of members of his
>> family.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> ‘Gogoi family has Rs 18-crore property in US’
>>> The peasant organisation also demanded a CBI inquiry into the allegation
>> and
>>> dared the Chief Minister to make a public statement on the source of the
>> money
>>> used in procuring property in the US.
>>> 
>>> Addressing mediapersons at a press conference here this afternoon, KMSS
>>> secretary Akhil Gogoi alleged that the Chief Minister has several houses
>> in the
>>> US in the names of his wife Dolly Gogoi (12700 W Dodge Road, Omaha NE
>> 69154),
>>> daughter Chandrima Gogoi (701 Berry Ave, Los Angeles C A 94024) and
>> son-in-law
>>> Prasenjit Phukan (178 Ownes Ct Mountain View C A 94043; 143 Albany St,
>> Cambridge
>>> MA 02139 and Los Altos CA 94022).
>>> 
>>> The money value of these houses when added together would be Rs 17, 88,
>> 45, 050.
>>> His daughter had declared while acquiring the property that her average
>> annual
>>> income was Rs 64, 42, 650, while her husband Prasenjit Phukan had made
>> three
>>> declarations stating that his average annual incomes were Rs 64, 42, 650,
>> Rs 34,
>>> 36,050 and Rs 72, 71, 250. Chief Minster's wife Dolly Gogoi declared that
>> her
>>> average annual income was Rs 29, 18, 650.
>>> 
>>> The peasant organisation alleged that the Chief Minister requisitioned
>> the
>>> services of his 'scam-tainted' Ministerial colleague Himanta Biswa Sarma
>> to
>>> transfer part of the looted money to the US through hawala. This is why
>> the
>>> Chief Minister has so far been maintaining silence over the issue of
>> Himanta
>>> Biswa Sarma embezzling the public money of the State.
>>> 
>>> The peasant organisation has collected the information concerning the US
>>> property of the Chief Minister's family by using the website intelius.
>> com, said
>>> the KMSS secretary.
>>> 
>>> It has hit out at Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) chief
>> Bhubaneswar
>>> Kalita for his 'halfhearted approach' in the matter of the corruption
>> indulged
>>> in by Himanta Biswa Sarma.
>>> 
>>> The peasant organisation is holding a massive demonstration against
>> corruption
>>> at the Dispur Last Gate from 11 am on January 10 and it has appealled to
>> all
>>> patriotic people to take part in the programme. Noted RTI activist Arvind
>>> Kezriwal and national convenor of the National Alliance of People's
>> Movement Dr
>>> Sandip Pandey will take part in the demonstration, said the KMSS
>> secretary.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> GUWAHATI, Jan 8: Launching a scathing attack on Chief Minister Tarun
>> Gogoi,
>>> Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) general secretary Akhil Gogoi today
>> gave a
>>> detailed account of property worth around Rs 18 crore in the form of
>> houses
>>> owned by the Chief Minister’s wife, daughter and son-in-law in the US.
>> The KMSS
>>> leader has dared the three to disclose their sources of income. He has
>> also
>>> demanded a CBI inquiry into the matter in order to unmask the truth.
>>> Addressing a press conference at the Guwahati Press Club today, the KMSS
>> leader
>>> said: “According to documents produced by Gogoi’s wife Dolly Gogoi and
>> daughter
>>> Chandrima Gogoi while purchasing one house each in the US, their annual
>> incomes
>>> are Rs 29.18 lakh and Rs 64.42 lakh respectively. Gogoi’s son-in-law
>> Prasenjit
>>> Phukan, however, showed three different annual incomes — Rs 64.42 lakh,
>> Rs 34.36
>>> lakh and Rs 72.71 lakh — while purchasing three different houses in the
>> US. I
>>> appeal to the three to make their sources of annual income public.”
>>> “We have no way out but to unmask the Chief Minister who has not paid any
>> heed
>>> to the deadline set by us for him to take action against his corrupt
>> Cabinet
>>> colleague, Himanta Biswa Sarma. It was followed by a 48-hour deadline set
>> by us
>>> for Gogoi to reply as to why he was not taking any action against the
>> corrupt
>>> minister though we had brought many corrupt practices of the minister to
>> light.
>>> We have to open our mouth today as the deadline set for the Chief
>> Minister is
>>> over,” Akhil Gogoi said, and added that minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was
>> the key
>>> man behind all the scams that had taken place during the tenure of Tarun
>> Gogoi.
>>> “Though we have exposed all the corrupt practices of Himanta Biswa Sarma,
>> Gogoi
>>> doesn’t take action against him as he is afraid of being unmasked if the
>>> minister opens his mouth.”
>>> The KMSS leader said: “Since when we have started our tirade against
>> corruption,
>>> people, including those staying abroad, have started to come on their own
>> and
>>> feed us with information. With the information received from NRIs, we
>> have
>>> approached the US embassy that has shown us the way to proceed. By making
>> online
>>> payment through a website (www.intelius.com) by credit cards, we have
>> got access
>>> to the documents of purchase of the houses by the family members of the
>> Chief
>>> Minister.”
>>> The KMSS leader further said that apprehensive of being blackmailed by
>> Himanta
>>> Biswa Sarma, Gogoi ‘‘is now trying to keep Sarma at a safe distance from
>> all
>>> matters relating to the State administration’’. Himanta Biswa Sarma,
>> according
>>> to the KMSS leader, is the key man behind sending the ill-gotten money
>> from the
>>> State to foreign countries through hawala. “We will soon file cases
>> against
>>> Sarma in the Supreme Court and the High Court,” he added.
>>> 
>>> Coming down heavily on Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president
>>> Bhubaneswar Kalita, Akhil Gogoi said: “The Congress has failed to take
>> action
>>> against corrupt Himanta Biswa Sarma due to the weak leadership of
>> Kalita.” He
>>> also took a dig at the opposition parties by saying that despite the KMSS
>>> exposing a large number of corrupt practices of the State Government, the
>>> Opposition had failed to put adequate pressure on the government to act
>> against
>>> corrupt ministers.
>>> Meanwhile, reacting to Akhil Gogoi’s revelations, AGP president Chandra
>> Mohan
>>> Patowary said: “Last year, the Chief Minister had announced that his
>> government
>>> would construct houses for flood- and erosion-affected people of the
>> State.
>>> Though the erosion-affected people have not got the promised houses,
>> Gogoi has
>>> successfully built a number of houses in the US. This is the real man
>> hiding
>>> within ‘clean’ Gogoi.”
>>> 
>>> Akhil dares CM to reveal assets- RTI activist demands CBI inquiry
>>> 
>>> Akhil Gogoi shows a photograph of Tarun Gogoi’s property in the US at the
>> press
>>> conference. Picture by Eastern Projections
>>> 
>>> Guwahati, Jan. 8: Peasant leader and RTI activist Akhil Gogoi today
>> claimed that
>>> family members and relatives of chief minister Tarun Gogoi possessed
>> property
>>> worth over Rs 17 crore in the US and dared the latter to make public the
>> sources
>>> of the assets, including five houses.
>>> Akhil, also the general secretary of Krishak Mukti Sangram Samity (KMSS),
>> said
>>> there were five houses in the name of the chief minister’s wife Dolly
>> Gogoi,
>>> daughter Chandrima and son-in-law Prasenjit Phukan at different locations
>> in the
>>> US.
>>> 
>>> “The information collected by us showed that there was a house in the
>> name of
>>> Dolly Gogoi at Omaha and another at Los Altos in his daughter’s name.
>> Three
>>> houses in the name of his son-in-law Prasenjit Phukan are located at
>> Cambridge,
>>> Mountain View and Los Altos. We have strong suspicion that the property
>> was
>>> procured with public money and hence we dare the chief minister to let
>> the
>>> people of Assam know the source. We also demand a CBI inquiry into the
>> assets,”
>>> Akhil Gogoi said at a press conference.
>>> Giving details and producing photographs of the houses, Akhil said the
>> People’s
>>> Interest Research Group, formed by the KMSS, collected the information
>> with the
>>> help of the American embassy and an information commerce company,
>> intelius.com,
>>> which provides consumers and businesses with predictive intelligence for
>>> important decisions.
>>> The chief minister’s office said Gogoi would comment after his return
>> from New
>>> Delhi. Media adviser Debo Bora told The Telegraph, “The chief minister
>> will
>>> react once he is back.”
>>> Akhil alleged that huge corruption had taken place during Gogoi’s tenure.
>> “The
>>> Congress high command, including Sonia Gandhi, has been claiming that the
>> party
>>> is committed to fight corruption but we have seen no action against
>> Gogoi,
>>> health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and other ministers involved in scams
>> in
>>> Dima Hasao district, Karbi Anglong and other departments,” the RTI
>> activist
>>> said.
>>> Akhil, also the recipient of two national RTI awards, said they would
>> launch a
>>> massive campaign against the Tarun Gogoi government ahead of the
>> forthcoming
>>> Assembly elections.
>>> “We will organise a dharna and observe a hatred day on Monday at Dispur
>> Last
>>> Gate to protest the massive corruption. Activist Sandip Pandey and Arvin
>>> Kejriwal will take part and we request all concerned citizens to join us
>> and
>>> protest the corruption of the Congress government in Assam,” he said.
>>> Akhil said four cases would be filed against Himanta Biswa Sarma and
>> Tarun Gogoi
>>> in the Supreme Court and Gauhati High court soon relating to
>> disproportionate
>>> assets and criminal cases.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
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