Centre has unleashed CBI on Narendra Modi: Shah tells SC

“It is just an illusion to say that CBI is a premier investigating agency. It was initially conceived as an anti-corruption agency but I regret to say that there is conclusive evidence to prove that the agency is subordinate to the political party in power.

“There is evidence to prove that there is a conspiracy between CBI and the central government to target a democratically-elected government that is a thorn to it. The idea is to first target Amit Shah and then fix Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his government,” Jethmalani told the apex court.

The senior counsel,appearing for Shah,made the allegations during the arguments on a petition seeking transfer of investigations relating to the alleged fake encounter killing of Tulsiram Prajapati by the Gujarat police to CBI and shift the trial outside Gujarat.

Narmada Bai,the mother of the deceased,had sought transfer of the case to CBI on the ground that he was a key witness in Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter killing case which was transferred to the agency by the apex court on January 12,2010.

CBI’s senior counsel K T S Tulsi also supported the plea for transfer of the case to the agency on the ground that Tulsiram Prajapati’s killing was an “integral part” of the Sohrabuddin killing.

Jethmalani,during the arguments however,countered Tulsi and said the third person was not Tulsiram Prajapati and the Gujarat police was proceeding with the case in the right direction. It had filed the chargesheet and the trial was proceeding in the right direction.

He would resume his arguments on Thursday.

Earlier,senior counsel Tulsi said the Sohrabuddin case was entrusted to CBI after it was convinced that Gujarat government was acting in a biased manner since several of its key police officials,including IPS officers D G Vanzara,Rajkumar Pandian and M N Dinesh,were involved.

Amit Shah,former Home Minister who was arrested in the case,was a kingpin of an extortion racket run by the deceased Sohrabuddin,he claimed.

According to Tulsi,it would be desirable to transfer the case to CBI since Tulsiram’s killing was connected with the Sohrabuddin case as he was a witness to the killing of the latter and his wife Kauser Bi.

While Sohrabuddin and Kasuer Bi were killed in a fake encounter by the Gujarat police in November 2005,Tulsiram Prajapati,it was alleged,was shot dead by the police in a similar encounter on December 27,2006 to destroy all evidence.

The Gujarat police had,however,opposed the transfer contending that the alleged victim was not Tulsiram but “could be” Kalimuddin alias Nayeemuddin,a Naxalite-turned-extortinist from Andhra Pradesh.

Counsel Huzefi Ahamadi,appearing for the petitioner,sought transfer of the case to CBI on the ground that the police and the state administrative machinery was “biased” and the atmosphere was vitiated in view of the enormous clout wielded by the accused due to their political standing.