Himanta is desperate, revealed kids' passports, called for genocide: Gaurav Gogoi
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi alleged that Himanta Biswa Sarma's actions reflect a desperate attempt to intimidate communities, claiming the Chief Minister "would go to any length," even engaging in illegal acts such as calling for genocide.
With the war of words between Gaurav Gogoi and Himanta Biswa Sarma showing no signs of fading ahead of the Assam elections, the Congress MP on Monday trained his guns on the Assam Chief Minister. He said that both Sarma’s hate speech targeting Muslims and dragging Gogoi’s minor children into the ongoing controversy over his alleged links with Pakistan were both "illegal".
Speaking to India Today, Gogoi said, “Openly calling for genocide against a particular minority community is also absolutely illegal.”
Gogoi slammed Sarma over a recently withdrawn social media advertisement, which depicted the Chief Minister with a gun and was said to be targeting illegal Bangladeshi migrants. The Congress MP alleged that Sarma’s actions reflect a desperate attempt to intimidate communities, claiming the Chief Minister "would go to any length," even engaging in illegal acts such as calling for genocide.
"The quality of leadership will be a key factor in the 2026 Assam elections. And, Himanta Biswa Sarma continues to show why he is unfit to occupy the office of Chief Minister," Gaurav Gogoi told India Today.
Gogoi further condemned Sarma for disclosing personal information about his children, including passport details, who are aged 5 and 9.
The Congress leader also accused Sarma of undermining Assam’s ethnic culture, stating that the BJP has “ended the Assam Accord” and sold 12,000 acres of tribal land protected under Schedule VI of the Constitution to corporate interests. He claimed Sarma openly courts individuals involved in cow or drug smuggling.
Gogoi expressed confidence that voters in Assam would reject Sarma in the upcoming 2026 elections, saying the state would choose governance based on the values of late Tarun Gogoi.
The political tensions escalated after Sarma held a press conference on Sunday, alleging links between Gogoi’s wife and Pakistan. Responding on Monday, Gogoi, addressing a press conference, accused the Chief Minister of suppressing an SIT report and dragging his minor children into what he described as a "super flop political drama."
While Gogoi was addressing the press, Sarma upped the ante, questioning what Gogoi was doing in Rawalpindi -- home to the Pakistan Army’s General Headquarters (GHQ) -- during his 2013 visit to the country.
“If his Pakistan visa explicitly permitted travel only to Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad, how did he visit Takshashila, which lies outside the Islamabad Capital Territory and within Rawalpindi District?” Sarma asked, stressing that Indians visiting Pakistan cannot travel beyond visa-designated cities without special permission.