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A controversy has erupted over the reported remarks of Central Bureau of Investigation chief Ranjit Sinha that the United Progressive Allianc government would have been happy if the Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Shah was named as accused in Ishrat Jahan case chargesheet, a comment which he has denied.
A Delhi daily reported that Sinha has said that the UPA government would have been happy had the encounter chargesheet mentioned close aide of BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, Amit Shah as the accused.
Shah was questioned twice in connection with the fake encounter by the agency but he was not named in the charge sheet as accused.
"There were political expectations... The UPA government would have been very happy if we government would have been very happy if we had charged Amit Shah...But we went strictly by evidence and found there was no prosecutable evidence against Shah," Sinha was quoted by the English business newspaper as saying.
A CBI spokesperson issued a statement that he was quoted out of context and unfairly.
"The Director CBI has been quoted unfairly and completely out of context. The CBI is an impartial and an apolitical organisation. In the Ishrat Jahan case, the CBI has done a fair investigation to the best of its ability," the statement said.
The BJP, which has been accusing the CBI of colluding with the Congress, used his reported remarks of the CBI chief to attack the Government.
"It is a very important statement coming from the director the CBI. There was no prosecutable evidence even three years ago in Sohrabuddin's case. The CBI obliged the Congress-led UPA in its attempt to target the prime ministerial candidate of the BJP, the Chief Minister of Gujarat by charging and targeting Amit Shah," BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said. PTI
In September last year, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitely had accused the CBI of "colluding" with the Congress in the Ishrat Jahan encounter probe and other fake encounters of Gujarat and demanded the commission of inquiry by the Supreme Court
Reacting to the development, Gujarat Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia said, "It is unfortunate that CBI director who enjoys so much of autonomy that his files cannot be seen by the officers of the UPA Government leave aside the ministers is making such a statement."
Taking a jibe at Sinha's statement, Janata Dal-United leader Ali Anwar said, "The director CBI should resign first. If the chief of a big agency of this country like the CBI speaks in such a manner, he should resign first and a case should be filed against him.
"It should come out how many accused he let off and how many were booked for pleasing his masters. An FIR should be filed and case should be run against him."
Although, Shah was neither an accused in the FIR nor has his name appeared in the charge sheet, as accused, he had been questioned twice in connection with the case as one of the accused police officer had hinted in his involvement.
In his resignation letter, arrested Gujarat Police DIG DG Vanzara had alleged that people who were inspiring, guiding and monitoring the actions of encounter teams of the Gujarat police should also be arrested.