A high-stakes controversy erupts as Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma claims that a Pakistani national with alleged ties to Gaurav Gogoi’s British wife has traveled to India multiple times. The BJP demands answers while Gogoi dismisses the accusations as baseless.
BY PC Bureau
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma alleged on Thursday that Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh—reportedly linked to Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi’s British wife—had traveled to India 18 times, according to an ongoing investigation.
During a discussion on the governor’s address, Sarma hinted that the initial findings could have major political repercussions for the Congress in Assam.
“In just three days, the Assam Police SIT uncovered that Ali Tauqeer Sheikh visited India 18 times. The next step is to determine who invited and hosted him during these trips,” Sarma stated.
He suggested that further revelations could be damaging, claiming that informal sources had already brought alarming details to light. “The preliminary findings are highly detrimental to the Congress. As a responsible leader speaking in this assembly, I assure you—we will dismantle Ali Sheikh’s network. Give us three months, and by the August session, we will expose everything,” he declared.
MP Gaurav Gogoi’s wife, Elizabeth Colburn Gogoi, visited Pakistan even after their marriage. Did Pakistan’s ISI attempt to destabilize the Assam CM's office at that time? To investigate all aspects legally, Assam Cabinet meeting today and a special inquiry team after that. pic.twitter.com/RvLPeFlRDh
— Nandan Pratim Sharma Bordoloi (@NANDANPRATIM) February 16, 2025
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Sarma asserted that the investigation’s findings could place several individuals in an uncomfortable position. He also alleged that while Sheikh is officially associated with a climate action group, his social media activity indicates an unusual focus on Assam’s immigration matters, which he described as an attempt to interfere in India’s internal affairs.
The Assam government further announced plans to request the Centre’s intervention in probing the involvement of Colburn, a British citizen, in election campaigns in the former Kaliabor constituency—a seat won twice by Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi.
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On Tuesday, Sarma maintained that his stance was driven by national security concerns, not political motives, dismissing accusations of conducting a “witch hunt” over Colburn’s suspected links to Pakistan’s ISI.
Previously, Sarma had softened his tone regarding Gogoi, suggesting on Sunday that the opposition leader may have been “trapped or blackmailed” in a larger “anti-India conspiracy” and expressing sympathy for him.
The BJP has accused Gogoi’s wife of having ties to Pakistan and the ISI, while also questioning why she had not applied for Indian citizenship despite being married for 12 years. Additionally, the party alleged that Gogoi raised sensitive defense-related questions in Parliament after marrying a foreign national. Gogoi, however, dismissed these claims as “baseless and absurd.”
In response, Gogoi stated on Friday that the BJP was going to extreme lengths to malign him and his family. He vowed to take legal action and later shared a heartfelt letter in Assamese to his wife on Facebook, reassuring her that “truth shall prevail.”
