Assam Police book Pakistani citizen Ali Tauqeer Sheikh under anti-terrorism law, SIT probe to follow

The Assam Police on Monday booked Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, a day after the state Cabinet called for an “extensive inquiry” to determine whether his activities were part of a “larger conspiracy” against India.

Sheikh is an advisor to Pakistan’s Planning Commission.

“Pursuant to the registration of the case…Assam Police has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the matter,” said Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

The state’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has claimed that Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi’s wife, British citizen Elizabeth Coleburn, has ties to Sheikh and Pakistan’s intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence.

The first information report against Sheikh invoked sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita related to alleged comments he made about India’s internal affairs and parliamentary matters. The FIR claimed they were aimed at disrupting communal harmony and the nation’s interests.

On Sunday, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that his Cabinet had passed a resolution directing the director general of police to file a case against Sheikh.

The resolution, posted by Sarma on social media, claimed that Sheikh and Coleburn had been part of a global climate action group – the Climate and Development Knowledge Network – which operated in both India and Pakistan.

“Apart from his engagements with the Government of Pakistan, Ali Sheikh has also founded LEAD…

Read more