The political war of words between Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi intensified on Sunday, February 8, after a Special Investigation Team (SIT) submitted its report on Gogoi’s alleged links with Pakistan. Addressing a press conference, Sarma said the allegations were serious and had national security implications, warranting a probe by a central agency.
Sarma claimed the SIT report suggests that Gogoi’s British wife, Elizabeth Colburn Gogoi, shared confidential information with Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh during her stint in Islamabad. The Assam government has decided to refer the case to the Union Home Ministry, with the handover to a central agency to begin once approval is received. The CM said the move was taken in the interest of transparency and national security, citing limitations in the state’s investigative reach.
According to Sarma, the 44-page SIT report indicates that Elizabeth was “managed” by Pakistani entities and received salary through LEAD Pakistan. He alleged she visited Pakistan nine times after marriage, often using the Attari border to maintain a low profile, and that confidential documents were shared with Sheikh. Sarma also raised questions over a 2013 Pakistan visit by Gogoi, during which he was reportedly allowed to visit Islamabad and Karachi in addition to Lahore.
The Chief Minister further alleged that Gogoi surrendered his minor son’s Indian passport in 2022 to obtain British citizenship, and sought explanations from the Congress MP on this and other issues. Sarma also questioned whether the Congress leadership was aware of the alleged links, stating that Rahul Gandhi and the party leadership must respond, given Gogoi’s proximity to the Gandhi family.
Reacting sharply, Gaurav Gogoi dismissed Sarma’s press conference as a “super flop,” calling it worse than “C-grade cinema.” In a social media post, the Congress leader said the allegations were “mindless and bogus” and contrasted them with the Congress’s #XomoyParivartanYatra, which he claimed had exposed alleged land holdings of the Chief Minister and his family.
