Himanta again: Gaurav Gogoi visited Pakistan for 15 days, may have been taken to Army HQ
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma continued to ramp up his offensive against Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi over what he claims are the latter’s Pakistan links, alleging on Tuesday that Gogoi visited the neighbouring country “for 15 days”.
He did not specify when this alleged visit was. The CM has repeatedly made this claim during the campaign for the panchayat polls in the state, which will conclude on Wednesday.
“Secondly, on his return, he took 90 boys and girls to the Pakistan embassy. Out of that, many have said that they were not told they were going to the Pakistan embassy. Subsequently, there are many questions (asked in Parliament by Gogoi) which indirectly help the Pakistan Army. You have to see that in the context of his visits. He may have been taken to the Army headquarters as well in Pakistan. But that he has to deny… He has to explain where he spent those 13-14 days,” Himanta claimed.
In response, Gogoi said, “At a time when the entire country is united and supporting the central government in their efforts against Pakistan, the BJP IT cell, including the Chief Minister of Assam, is indulging in petty politics. We want the government to take strong measures against Pakistan and extract a heavy price for the Pahalgam attack.”
Himanta’s attacks had started with the allegation that Gaurav’s wife Elizabeth, who works in the field of climate policy and had worked in Pakistan for some time, had links with the ISI. He also claimed their two children had surrendered their Indian passports a few years ago.
“Let Rahul Gandhi clarify whether an Indian person visiting Pakistan when he happened to be the son of a sitting Chief Minister, without even informing the Congress party, is a crime or not. We want to know the position of the Congress party. So I will speak to (Congress president) Mallikarjun Kharge as well. If he says going to Pakistan is not a crime, then fine, let the people of India know that. But we want to hear that from Rahul Gandhi, we want to hear that from Kharge,” said Sarma.
In February, a Special Investigation Team was formed in the state to probe an FIR registered against Pakistani climate police expert Ali Tauqeer Sheikh and “unknown others” on charges of abetment from outside India for an offence in India; acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India; criminal conspiracy; imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration; and under the UAPA Act. This came after Sarma alleged that Gogoi and Elizabeth, Sheikh’s former colleague, are “accomplices”.
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