HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, July 31: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday intensified his offensive against Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, mocking his remarks in Parliament, accusing him of sympathising with Pakistan, and suggesting that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into Gogoi’s alleged links with a Pakistani national may soon be handed over to a national agency such as the NIA.
Without naming Gogoi directly, Sarma ridiculed the MP’s recent speech in Parliament regarding India’s missile strike strategy.
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“One of our MPs questioned why India launched a missile from a distance and not from close range—as if it were a firecracker. You’re such a great scientist,” Sarma said sarcastically.
He alleged the speech was celebrated more in Pakistan than in India, calling it a matter of shame for Assam.
“When our armed forces can strike targets thousands of kilometres away, he chooses to criticise rather than commend them,” he added.
The chief minister further accused Gogoi of harbouring anti-India sentiments.
“He never truly loved India. His children and wife are foreign citizens. In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising if he too changes his citizenship soon,” Sarma said, claiming that Gogoi’s speeches in Parliament since 2014 seem designed to favour Pakistan.
“His constituency, Jorhat and Sivasagar, holds deep ties with India’s independence movement, yet its MP is now celebrated across the border,” he alleged.
In a related development, Sarma also revealed that the state’s SIT probing alleged connections between Gogoi’s wife, Elizabeth Colebourn, and Pakistan national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, has been asked to submit its report by September 10 without any extension.
The investigation, which also looks into purported links with the Pakistan Army and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), is examining citizenship records and multiple cross-border travels.
“The SIT in Assam has a very limited scope and cannot access telephonic records or interactions beyond two years,” Sarma said, adding that central agencies like the National Investigation Agency (NIA) can retrieve data going back to 2010 or 2011.
“We haven’t made a formal request yet. Once the SIT submits its report, the state cabinet will decide—on September 11 or 12—whether to transfer the case to the NIA, CBI, or place it under the Ministry of Home Affairs.”
Sarma claimed Colbourn travelled 19 times between India and Pakistan, and that Gogoi himself had visited Pakistan “in a personal capacity” for 15 days via the Wagah-Attari border.
He alleged Colbourn had “good relations with the Pakistan Army,” and that Pakistan officials had accompanied her during her stay.
The CM insisted that the probe is strictly procedural.
“We’re in the process of completing the statutory provisions to authenticate the data. Everything will be made public by September 10,” he said.
Responding to the allegations earlier, Gaurav Gogoi had dismissed them as a “C-grade Bollywood film” with a release date set for September 10.
He said, “If there is truth to these claims, what were the central agencies doing over the last 11 years of BJP rule?”
Sarma, however, continued to attack Gogoi’s political conduct. “His statements in Parliament are always against India. It’s no wonder Pakistan hails him as a hero,” he said. (With inputs from PTI)
