Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday reiterated his allegations that Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi’s wife had ties with Pakistan, after a special investigation team (SIT) of the state published a report on the matter.His remark comes a day after the Assam Cabinet on Saturday gave its approval to refer the case of Gogoi’s alleged Pakistan links to the Ministry of Home Affairs. At a press conference in Guwahati on Sunday, Sarma said that owing to the sensitive nature of the matter, it was referred to the Union Home Ministry.Sarma said according to the SIT report, Gogoi’s wife had shared confidential information with Pakistan. “The allegations are serious and must be probed by a central agency,” he asserted.Meanwhile, the Congress MP snubbed Sarma’s press conference as “worse than C grade cinema”. In a post on X, Gogoi, who is the Congress’ deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, said, “Himanta Biswa Sarma has embarrassed himself on the stage in front of local and national media. After 2.5-hour press conference, even the journalists in the room were unconvinced. Nobody in Assam is taking his words seriously. #SuperFlop.”“He should rather explain how his family managed to acquire 12,000 bighas or 4,000 acres of prime property across Assam. When we will come to power, we will take that land back and distribute it among the poor and landless,” the Congress MP wrote further.However, Sarma defended the Assam Government’s decision to send the SIT report to the Centre for further probe, saying any coercive action against the Congress leader could have been interpreted as being politically driven, especially as the Assembly elections are just round the corner.Sarma said the process to handover the case to the Centre would be initiated once the Union Home Ministry gives its consent. He further clarified that the decision was taken in the interest of national security and transparency.He claimed that the 44-page SIT report suggests that the Congress leader’s wife, Elizabeth Gogoi, shared confidential documents with a Pakistani national, Tauqeer Sheikh. The investigation revealed that the MP’s wife was being managed by Pakistan, he said, citing salary transactions from an Islamabad-based firm, Lead Pakistan.Sarma further alleged that Gogoi’s wife used to enter Pakistan through the Attari border to maintain a low profile. The investigation has revealed that she travelled to Pakistan nine times since marrying Gogoi, he said.“Someone from the Gogoi family also helped the Pakistani firm with inputs and suggestions from time to time,” he added.Sarma also alleged that during a 2013 Pakistan trip, Gogoi and his wife were only allowed to visit Lahore, but he was later permitted to visit Islamabad and Karachi, for which he sought an explanation from Gogoi.Sarma further told reporters that Gogoi had surrendered his minor son’s passport at the Delhi passport office in 2022 so that he could get British citizenship. “In his passport, it was mentioned that the child was a Hindu. But when he was issued a British passport, the religion column was left blank,” the CM said, and gave Gogoi 10 days’ time to clarify his stand.On being asked whether the Congress leadership protected Gogoi despite being aware of his alleged Pakistan links, Sarma said that the MP was close to the Gandhi family and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi must look into the matter and answer this.