CBI dossier on Ishrat killing may make Modi government squirm

The CBI may not have chargesheeted Intelligence Bureau officials or any political figure in the Ishrat Jehan fake encounter case as yet, but the 1500-page dossier submitted by the investigating agency has the potential to cause unease to the political establishment in Gujarat.

Part of the annexures submitted by the CBI before a court, including a testimony by an important witness and a Gujarat police officer which indicate that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his former minister of state for home Amit Shah may have had ‘knowledge’ of the fake encounter.

A ten-page statement by a retired DySP and a Crime branch Inspector at the time of the encounter, D H Goswami, hints at a political conspiracy behind the encounter though the agency is still to collect corroborative evidence to back the claim. Goswami had made the disclosure under Section 164 of the CrPC before a magistrate in Mumbai in which he not only indicts Crime branch officials but also hints at a larger conspiracy.

The top cop is reported to have given testimonies saying that the cops had the go ahead from politicians. Sources say that Goswami had told CBI that two days before the encounter, he along with IPS officer G L Singhal, had gone to the Crime branch office for a late evening meeting.

Goswami reportedly told the CBI that IPS officer D G Vanzara, his boss P P Pandey and officer of Subsidiary Intelligence bureau, Rajinder Kumar, were giving final touches to the fake encounter. According to his testimony, say sources, Goswami overheard Vanzara saying that he had spoken to the `CM about the matter’.

The retired DySP is also reported to have stated that he had overheard Vanzara saying that he had spoken to `the white and black beard’, perhaps a reference to the Gujarat
Chief Minister and Shah.

But despite the testimony, the CBI did not name any IB official in the chargesheet nor any political figure, knowing that it needed to back the claims with evidence, say sources. A supplementary chargesheet expected to be filed by the investigating agency in the next one month could perhaps unravel that conspiracy, revealed CBI sources. Underlining the role of the senior IB official Rajinder Kumar, it stated that “Vanzara, Pandey, Rajinder Kumar and Dr N K Amin had met Javed and Ishrat Jehan during their illegal custody on different days and times.”

Further it noted “that on 13.06.2004 evening, Vanzara, Pandey and Rajinder Kumar had discussed in Bungalow No 15, Duffnala, Shahibaug office chamber of Vanzara the plan to eliminate the four detainees - Jishan Johar, Amjadali, Javed and Ishrat - and lodging an FIR showing their death in an  encounter.”

Alleging that it was IPS officer Singhal, who had collected weapons from the SIB under instructions of Vanzara, CBI said that the draft complaint, wherein some contents (names, number of rounds etc) were blank, was drafted by Vanzara on June 14 afternoon.