Offer to Barua to visit a humanitarian gesture: Gogoi

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Saturday said he has been discharging his duties keeping national interests over and above everything else and never undermined national interests while performing his duties.
Reacting to a reported statement of Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on his (Gogoi’s) humanitarian gesture to ULFA commander Paresh Baruah to visit his ailing mother at his native place as ‘undermining national interests’, Gogoi said, “I know my national interests and I just gave an option to facilitate an ailing mother’s reunion with her son, by keeping national interest on the top.”
“I have all along been fighting the anti-national forces and I have succeeded to a great extent in containing these forces. National interest all along has been a priority and utmost importance to me, I don’t want anybody’s advice on it,” Gogoi added. Gogoi however, clarified that he had made a statement that if Paresh Baruah wanted to visit his ailing mother, Government might consider it on humanitarian ground and his gesture should not be construed as a ‘safe passage’ to Paresh Baruah. (UNI)