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Himanta accuses Gogoi of taking youths to Pak exposing them to radicalisation

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Tuesday, launched a blistering attack on Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, accusing him of taking a group of 90 Indian youths to Pakistan under false pretences and exposing them to potential radicalisation.

Himanta accuses Gogoi of taking youths to Pak exposing them to radicalisation

Photo: ANI

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Tuesday, launched a blistering attack on Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, accusing him of taking a group of 90 Indian youths to Pakistan under false pretences and exposing them to potential radicalisation.

Addressing a press conference in Guwahati, he claimed that the youths were told they would be visiting diplomatic missions as part of an international exposure programme but were instead taken to the Pakistan Embassy. “Two to three participants have stated they were misled,” the chief minister said, alleging that the itinerary was deliberately kept vague, shrouding it in secrecy.

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Sarma charged Gogoi with raising pro-Pakistani questions in Parliament. “There is no compromise with Pakistan. Will not tolerate any attempt to misguide or endanger our youth in the name of diplomacy,” he said, calling the act “a big crime” and demanding that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should clarify in Parliament whether Congress MPs are officially allowed to visit Pakistan.

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In more explosive personal allegations, he claimed Gogoi not only visited Pakistan but also met with a Pakistani army officer and spent 15 days in the country without notifying Indian authorities—something Sarma termed a “serious breach”.

He further alleged that Gogoi’s British wife, Elizabeth Colburn, had links with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), intensifying what appears to be a multi-pronged political offensive.

Sarma indicated that more revelations would follow, setting a September 10 deadline for disclosing further evidence, including documents from the UK and Pakistan. “I have to show proof to the people, or else they won’t believe me,” he said.

“There is a deeper story,” he added, cryptically referring to the citizenship status of Gogoi’s children.

The Congress party is yet to officially respond to the allegations.

Gaurav Gogoi, the Deputy Leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha and MP from Assam’s Jorhat constituency, has been a vocal critic of the BJP government’s policies in Assam and the Northeast. Son of late chief minister Tarun Gogoi, he has emerged as a prominent face of the Congress in the state.

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