‘Better to give him Pak’s responsibility’: Assam CM’s dig at Gaurav Gogoi after friendship group head nomination

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday took a dig at state Congress president Gaurav Gogoi after the latter’s name was nominated for the chief of India-Philippines Parliamentary Friendship Group, saying it would have been better if the Congress leader had been given Pakistan’s responsibility.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has constituted Parliamentary Friendship Groups with 64 countries and appointed senior leaders, including those from the Opposition parties, to head them. Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi was nominated by Speaker Birla to head the India-Philippines Parliamentary Friendship Group for the 18th Lok Sabha.

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Reacting to this, CM Himanata sarcastically said, “It would have been better if Gaurav Gogoi had been given responsibility for Pakistan. He could have maintained relations with Pakistan as well.”

For the unversed, Himanta has accused Gaurav Gogoi of having links to Pakistan. The Assam CM has even ordered an SIT investigation into this. He claimed that Guarav Gogoi’s wife, Elizabeth Colburn Gogoi, worked in Pakistan from March 18, 2011, to March 17, 2012, and her family had close ties with Ali Tauqeer Sheikh.

Gogoi has denied the allegations and said that the SIT constituted to probe the allegations could not find any evidence that could prove that he is an agent of another country.

“He kept beating around the bush. He had the SIT report for the last 6 months. Last year, he said he would release the SIT report to the public on September 10. If this concerns national security, our only question is: why was the Chief Minister silent on this report for the past 6 months? It is because the SIT constituted by him was unsuccessful in presenting any evidence…,” Gogoi said earlier this month.

He said that the Assam CM should have made the SIT report public as it concerns national security. “If it were a matter of national security, why was he (Assam Chief Minister) sitting idle for the last six months?” Gogoi asked.