Amit Shah – Page 2

D G Vanzara leaves jail, says 'acche din' are back

February 18, 2015 by Nasheman

Photo: Hindustan Times

Ahmedabad: Moments after walking out of jail after almost eight years, former Gujarat deputy inspector general of police DG Vanzara, one of the accused in Sohrabuddin Sheikh and Ishrat Jahan’s encounter case, has said that the Gujarat Police were targeted for “extra political reasons”.

“Ache din [Good days] for me and other police officers are back,” Vanzara was quoted as saying by television channels after coming out of the Sabarmati Central Jail on Wednesday. He further added,”Gujarat Police were targeted for extra ploitical reasons.” Ache din ayenge [Good days will come] was one of the poll slogans of the BJP ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

D G Vanzara, 61, is one of Gujarat’s most controversial police officers. Earlier this month, he was granted bail in the Ishrat Jahan case, one of two “fake encounter” cases against him, on the condition that he will not enter his home state Gujarat.

He had been granted bail in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh murder case in 2014. He was a Deputy Inspector General of Police when he was arrested in March 2007 and had been in jail since.

Mr Vanzara and other top police officers are accused of killing 19-year-old college student Ishrat Jahan and three others in 2004 and, in a separate case later, a petty criminal Sohrabbudin Sheikh, his wife and Tulsiram Prajapati, a key witness.

Mr Vanzara and the other police officers claim they were killing terrorists who wanted to assassinate Narendra Modi, who was then chief minister of Gujarat. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) says the civilians were killed in cold blood.

Today, Mr Vanzara said, “Anti-terror operations happen in every state. But Gujarat Police was a victim of politics. It was unfairly targeted for political reasons.”

He refused to comment on a resignation letter he had written from jail in 2013, in which he accused Amit Shah, who was Home Minister of Gujarat and is now BJP chief, of being in the know of the police officers’ plans to counter the civilians, who he maintained were terrorists from the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Mr Vanzara’s resignation was not accepted and he retired last year, while still in prison.

(Agencies)

How AAP Won a Historic Result in Delhi

February 10, 2015 by Nasheman

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal flanked by his wife, Sunita, addresses supporters at the party office in New Delhi.

by Ashutosh

Historic. Yes, history has taken a decisive turn. The Delhi elections are finally over and the results are out. Many myths have been busted. The leader often described as most popular and most powerful has been humbled. The aura of invincibility is broken. The impossible has been achieved. The Aam Aadmi Party has won. The BJP has lost.

If we had predicted something like this a few months ago, people would have laughed at us and called us a bunch of loonies. I still remember how just some weeks after the parliamentary elections, people in Arvind Kejriwal’s constituency shut doors on his face. He once told me how a local guard, seeing him walk by, had commented sarcastically about wanting to be the PM. His reference was to Arvind going to Varanasi to contest against Modi, then the darling of the masses.

The last Parliamentary elections were the worst thing that could have happened to any party or leader other than the BJP! AAP had lost all the seven seats in its pocket burrough of Delhi. It had contested more than 400 seats and its candidates had lost their deposits in almost 90% of the seats. The Party was ridiculed as zamaanat zapt party (the party which has lost its deposits).

Arvind Kejriwal was ridiculed no end. He was badly bruised. Experts had written his obituary. AAP as a party was declared dead despite improving its vote share in Delhi by 4% and winning four seats in Punjab.

We all were down. We knew elections in Delhi were due and could be announced any moment. We had to pull ourselves together and above all, we all had to believe that though we had lost the battle, the war was still on. For the first time, I saw Arvind shaky and vulnerable. He was not the same person. He seemed tentative. But like a General, he slowly gathered himself and decided to face the miseries of life with courage and made plans on ‘how it could be done’. For us, it was a do-or-die situation. Victory was the only alternative. A plan was chalked out. We identified our negatives and listed three major ones:

We realised that the people of Delhi were very upset. They felt cheated. They had wanted Arvind to continue as the Chief Minister. He should not have resigned. So Arvind openly admitted that he had committed a mistake. He admitted he should have continued despite his failure to make the Jan Lokpal a law. He was still considered honest. His integrity was unmatched. He tried assuring people that he would not resign again. He asked for Forgiveness.
As a party, AAP has been accused of specializing in ‘Dharna’. Our record as a party of governance was very poor in the eyes of the intellectual class. We looked for a framework. Delhi Dialogues was one such idea. It broke the myth that manifesto-making is a one-day phenomenon. AAP decided to bring back the equilibrium. AAP had to prove it could be a party of governance. The party unleashed a policy framework; it took the discussion about Delhi development to the people, the ‘common man.’ It was decided to make the campaign ‘positive’, to keep the development of Delhi as the main focus.
During the last assembly elections, our volunteer base was very strong but it did not have a structured shape. It was decided to augment the energy of the volunteers and strengthen the organisation to the booth level. More than ten frontal organisations were also created. By the time elections were declared, AAP was already a well-oiled engine. And Arvind had already toured every constituency twice.

Once the list of negatives was made, the effort was to overcome these with an open mind. It was tough but not impossible. Arvind was of the opinion that AAP, as a matter of strategy would not participate in any election, be it assembly or municipal outside Delhi. Some of the leaders did not like the idea. Arvind was adamant. He did not want any adverse impact on Delhi elections. Energy was to be consolidated.

By mid-December, we had regained our confidence. We knew it would be a tough contest but we would pull through. Modi was the only hitch. We waited for Modi to address his rally at Ram Lila Ground. The rally flopped. We were ecstatic. The BJP’s trump card had failed. The BJP became desperate and started looking for someone who could be as credible as Arvind. It could not find one in its party. It had to borrow from outside. Kiran Bedi was declared the Chief Ministerial candidate. We were a little apprehensive. But we knew that if she started talking to cameras, she would be a great asset for AAP. She delivered. Our script was complete. Bedi could not control herself.

The BJP committed another mistake. In trying times, it resorted to negatives and abuses. We were careful and decided to stick to our development plank. We talked about eradication of corruption, providing electricity at half the current price and water free of cost. Free Wi- Fi was another hit. The poor and marginalised were strongly with us. Minorities joined us as the Congress was nowhere in the contest. The middle class which was disenchanted with us due to our shrillness when we were in government, got disillusioned with the BJP’s negative campaign. The BJP’s personalized attack on Arvind put them off. Big promises but zero delivery broke the myth that Modi was in any way different from Manmohan Singh. We wanted these elections to be a referendum on Arvind and in the end we succeeded in doing so.

These elections will go down in history as the turning point- a game-changer. They proved the point that clean politics and affordable politics is possible. AAP did not have the money to match the might and resources of the BJP, but it had the moral edge over its opponent. People of India are fed up with traditional politics of money power, muscle power and manipulation. They are looking for an alternative.

AAP’s massive victory will start a new alignment of forces; a new dawn has appeared. It will make politics cool. The common man can now afford to enter politics and succeed. It will no longer be a game of only scoundrels. A small step by AAP, but a big leap in politics.

Ashutosh joined the Aam Aadmi Party in January 2014. The former journalist took on former Union minister Kapil Sibal and Health Minister Harsh Vardhan in the national election from Chandni Chowk in Delhi. The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author.

AAP tsunami routs BJP, Congress in Delhi; Hazare says it's Modi's defeat

February 10, 2015 by Nasheman

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal flanked by his wife, Sunita, addresses supporters at the party office in New Delhi.

New Delhi: In one of the most stunning comebacks in Indian political history, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of Arvind Kejriwal Tuesday scored a landslide win in Delhi, delivering to the BJP its first electoral defeat since its historic Lok Sabha triumph and reducing the Congress, that had ruled the capital for 15 years till 2013, to a virtual nonentity.

As thousands of AAP activists broke into celebrations all over the capital, election officials counting the votes polled Saturday said the party was tipped to end up with a staggering 65 of the 70 assembly seats — the highest victory margin for any party in Delhi so far.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had led an aggressive campaign against Kejriwal and had called him an “anarchist” and had even compared his ideology to that of Maoist extremists, congratulated the AAP leader as it became clear that the BJP was headed for a humiliating rout, winning at best just four seats. Modi promised the central government’s full cooperation to the AAP government, which is expected to take oath at the Ramlila Maidan Sunday — exactly a year after Kejriwal quit after ruling the capital for 49 tumultuous days.

An emotional Kejriwal, 46, who founded the AAP only in 2012, became teary eyed as his colleagues repeatedly hugged him and lifted him in the air at his house at Kaushambi in Ghazibad bordering Delhi. Outside, activists kept a steady chant of “Paanch Saal, Kejriwal!”

Kejriwal later reached the AAP office in central Delhi where he told thousands of boisterous supporters waving party flags and brooms — the AAP election symbol — that the AAP sweep was “a victory for truth and honesty”.

There were traffic jams in many parts of Delhi as AAP supporters, a majority of them young people, celebrated on the streets.

The Congress suffered an unprecedented washout, with all its 70 candidates losing. Its chief ministerial aspirant, Ajay Maken, resigned as general secretary.

So massive was the AAP sweep that even BJP veterans, including some household names in Delhi, were on the losing track.

The party’s chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi, who was personally picked by Modi and BJP president Amit Shah to lead the party’s charge — a move that created deep fissures within the party — was struggling to win.

“This is incredible. We can’t believe it,” AAP leader and former Delhi minister Manish Sisodia told IANS. Senior AAP leader Yogendra Yadav called it a victory of proverbial David over Goliath. Other party leader cautioned AAP members not to go overboard.

As expected, the AAP win created ripples across the country.

In remarks clearly aimed at Modi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who had asked people in Delhi to vote for the AAP, said it was a “big defeat for the arrogant”

“This is a victory for the people and a big defeat for the arrogant and those who are doing political vendetta and spreading hate… The election is a turning point… The country needed this change.”

Gandhian Anna Hazare added: “The result is a defeat for Narendra Modi. What did the BJP do in the past nine months? The BJP made promises to tackle corruption. Instead they took anti-people, anti-farmer decisions. They lost public confidence.”

Hazare, who mentored Kejriwal when he launched an anti-corruption campaign here in 2011 that shook India, urged the AAP leader not to repeat the mistakes he committed during his earlier stunt as chief minister.

In Kerala, former chief minister V.S. Achuthanandan called the vote for AAP a blow to “Modi’s arrogance”. Former Bihar chief minister and JD-U leader Nitish Kumar echoed him. The CPI-M hailed the people of Delhi for “decisively rejecting the BJP”.

One after another, BJP leaders accepted defeat and congratulated the AAP and Kejriwal. “As the party’s Delhi leader, I accept moral responsibility for the defeat,” said Satish Upadhyay. “Clearly, we made a mistake in understanding the people’s mood.”

Election officials said the AAP was poised to grab as many as 65 of the 70 seats, leaving just four to the BJP. Even lesser known AAP activists won easily. AAP leaders who had joined the BJP just before the polls were also routed. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) was set to win one seat.

“Kejriwal is teary eyed,” AAP leader Pankaj Gupta told IANS. “None of us could sleep properly last night because we were tense. Now, we just cannot believe these unbelievable results.”

The AAP is set to bag an incredible 54 percent of all votes, officials said. The AAP swept all across the capital, including both in the middle class areas and low income neighbourhoods.

Kejriwal hiself was headed for victory in New Delhi constituency, where he created history in 2013 by defeating three-time chief minister Sheila Dikshit.

Senior AAP leaders, including Somnath Bharti, Manish Sisodia and Rakhi Birla, who were ministers in the earlier Kejriwal government, were also poised to win.

Earlier, Kejriwal tweeted: “All the very best Delhiites. Do pray. Prayers are very powerful.”

(IANS)

Bihar Chief minister expelled from JD(U) on charges of indiscipline

February 9, 2015 by Nasheman

Bihar: JD(U) leader KC Tyagi, in a press conference, said Manjhi had been expelled from the party because he was involved in anti-party activities.

“Sharad Yadav removed Jitan Ram Manjhi as a member of the JD(U) on charges of indiscipline,” said Tyagi. “Yadav took this decision on the basis of party principle. The decision was taken on the basis of the emergency powers of the party under Article 23 of the party constitution,” he said.

Tyagi also said that the JD(U) Legislature Party meeting in which Nitish Kumar was made the leader was called by Manjhi himself. “He called the meeting because he said there were some disputes which needed to be settled. However, instead of attending the meeting, he called the meeting invalid,” said the JD(U) leader.

“Manjhi was involved in anti-party activities,” he said. Tyagi also slammed the BJP for earlier criticising the Bihar government and later on siding with Manjhi. “Earlier, Sushil Kumar Modi had said that Bihar is going towards jungle raj. When we acted on Sushil Modi’s advice (by removing Manjhi), he turned against us,” Tyagi said.

“This entire script ‘Operation Jitan Ram Manjhi’ was under the direction of Amit Shah. And Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself blessed the operation,” said Tyagi.

The JD(U) leader also challenged Manjhi to prove his majority on the floor of the House. “Manjhi just has 12 supporters…Within 48 hours, either Manjhi needs to prove his majority to the Governor or Nitish should become CM and show his majority,” he said.

(Agencies)

Former police officer D G Vanzara gets bail in Ishrat Jahan case

February 5, 2015 by Nasheman

Photo: Hindustan Times

Ahmedabad/NDTV: One of Gujarat’s most controversial police officers, DG Vanzara, is likely to walk out of jail soon after he was granted bail today in the 2004 killing of college student Ishrat Jahan. But a court in Ahmedabad said he can’t enter Gujarat.

Eight police officers were charge-sheeted in the case. Four were granted bail earlier and today, two more got it – Mr Vanzara and another police officer, PP Pande.

Mr Vanzara was granted bail in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter killing case of 2005 in September.

He has been in a jail in Ahmedabad for eight years for cases that earned him the nickname of “encounter specialist”. He retired last year. He was arrested in March 2007, when he was a Deputy Inspector General of Police, for the Sohrabuddin killing.

Sohrabuddin, a petty criminal, his wife Kauser Bi and Tulsiram Prajapati were traveling on a bus from Andhra Pradesh in 2005 when they were kidnapped by the Gujarat police. Sohrabuddin and his wife were killed a few days later. Tulsiram, a key witness to their abduction, was shot dead a year later; the police claimed that he was trying to escape.

Mr Vanzara was also made an accused in the killing of Ishrat Jahan, a 19-year-old, and three men in 2004. All four were shot dead by police officers who claimed that they were involved in a plot to kill Narendra Modi, who was Chief Minister of Gujarat at the time.

In 2013, Mr Vanzara quit the force and shot off a vitriolic letter in which he accused Mr Modi and BJP president Amit Shah, a former Home Minister of Gujarat, of making him and other police officers scapegoats for following their orders.

In December, a court in Mumbai accepted Amit Shah’s discharge petition and said he will not face charges in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh killing.

Sohrabuddin Killing: Former Gujarat police chief discharged on technicality

February 4, 2015 by Nasheman

Mumbai/NDTV: Former Gujarat police chief PC Pandey, who was accused of trying to derail investigations into the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter killing case, was today let off on a technicality.

PC Pandey, a former Director General of Police, was discharged after a court in Mumbai ruled that the CBI should have taken the Centre’s sanction before charging him.

Sources say this could pave the way for more police officers to be discharged in the decade-old fake encounter case.

In 2005, Sohrabuddin, a petty criminal, his wife Kauser Bi and Tulsiram Prajapati were traveling on a bus from Andhra Pradesh when they were kidnapped by the Gujarat police. Sohrabuddin and his wife were killed a few days later. Tulsiram, a key witness to their kidnapping, was shot dead a year later; the police claimed that he was trying to escape.

Mr Pande was accused of suppressing evidence in Tulsiram’s killing.

Another controversial police officer, DG Vanzara, was granted bail in the case last year.

In 2013, Mr Vanzara quit the force and shot off a vitriolic letter in which he accused Narendra Modi, then Gujarat Chief Minister, and Amit Shah, a former state home minister, of making him and other police officers scapegoats for following their orders.

In December, a court in Mumbai accepted Amit Shah’s discharge petition and said the BJP president will not face charges in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh killing.

Kiran Bedi BJP's chief ministerial candidate in Delhi; hoarding vandalised outside party office

January 20, 2015 by Nasheman

New Delhi: Former IPS officer Kiran Bedi, who joined the BJP less than a week ago, will be the party’s chief ministerial candidate in the Feb 7 Delhi assembly polls, taking on her former anti-corruption stir colleague Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

She will contest from Krishna Nagar seat in east Delhi. It was earlier held by Harsh Vardhan, the chief ministerial candidate in the December 2013 elections and now a union minister.

Making the announcement after a meeting of the party parliamentary board, Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah expressed confidence that the decision will result in the party getting full majority.

“The BJP parliamentary board has decided that the party will fight the forthcoming polls under leadership of Kiran Bedi. Kiranji will also be the chief ministerial candidate,” Shah said at a late night press conference.

“I feel the name that the BJP has decided will meet the peoples’ expectations and our decision will definitely lead to victory,” he added.

Shah said that workers were feeling enthused since Bedi took membership of the party. “It has raised their morale,” he said.

Bedi joined the BJP Jan 15.

Shah dismissed suggestions that there were differences among party leaders over Bedi’s projection as the chief ministerial candidate.

“Every worker is one on this,” he said.

Hoarding Vandalised

Hours after the announcement, however, a hoarding of Bedi outside the BJP office here was vandalised.

Some vandals had cut out the faces of Bedi and party president Satish Upadhyay from a hoarding that was put up outside the office of BJP’s state unit at 14, Pandit Pant Marg following the announcement.

The banner showed Upadhyay and Bedi on one side and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah on the other with the lines “Kiran Bedi ji ka Bhajapa me hardik swagat hain” (A hearty welcome to Kiran Bedi in BJP) written in the centre.

The incident appears to be giving credibility to some media reports that the decision to opt for Bedi — considered to be an “outsider” — over other senior leaders has divided the party, with one section overjoyed and the other left sulking.

The BJP’s decision on naming Bedi, 65, as chief ministerial candidate came after the party leadership felt that they needed a credible local face to take on Kejriwal, who has strong anti-corruption credentials. AAP finished close to the BJP in the 2013 assembly poll.

The party’s decision came just two days before the end of nomination process for the Feb 7 polls to the 70-member assembly.

Bedi has been an anti-corruption activist, a former tennis player and her innings in Delhi Police is still widely remembered in the city. She initiated prison reforms in the Tihar Central Jail when she was heading it.

She has won the Ramon Magsaysay award, an honour she shares with Kejriwal. Both were part of the anti-corruption agitation led by Gandhian Anna Hazare.

Since her induction in the BJP, Bedi has talked about her priorities — as a likely candidate to lead the party’s campaign.

Asked about the change in BJP’s stance of not projecting a chief ministerial candidate, Shah said the party had also projected chief ministerial candidates in states such as Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

“There is an atmosphere. A decision is taken after taking into account all factors… the political factors,” he said.

Before it took decision to induct Bedi and project a local face, the BJP in Delhi appeared to bank mainly on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Answering a query about Bedi being an “outsider”, Shah said that the party had provided platform to people from various fields and they had delivered successfully.

“The decision was taken with consensus. It has support of all,” he said.

Shah said the party would continue to have a tie-up with the Shiromani Akali Dal in Delhi.

On Bedi, he said: “She has lived in Delhi throughout her life. She is a well-known name in the fight against corruption and in service of people.”

Answering a query, he said the decision to field Bedi from Krishna Nagar, a “traditional seat” of the party, was taken so that she could devote time to campaign in all the seats.

(IANS)

Former IPS officer Kiran Bedi joins BJP, likely to contest against Kejriwal

January 15, 2015 by Nasheman

New Delhi: Former IPS officer and anti-corruption activist Kiran Bedi on Thursday joined the BJP at a function held at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi.

Praising Bedi for her role as an IPS officer, BJP chief Amit Shah said: “I welcome her on behalf of the party and I believe that her joining the party will strengthen the Delhi unit especially ahead of the polls.”

Shah also announced that Bedi would contest the elections but stopped short of announcing her as the CM candidate saying it was the parliamentary board that decides the CM.

“Leave it to the parliamentary board, let them decide who will be the CM,” he said.

Along with Bedi, ex-AAP leader Shazia Ilmi as well as former Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Prada are also expected to join the party today.

While Jaya Prada in an interview to a news channel confirmed that she is in talks with the party, Shazia Ilmi sought time before taking a final decision.

Shazia Ilmi, however, made it clear that she will campaign against AAP and will work “to expose AAP for what it is.”

Amit Shah’s case – A complete mockery of Justice system

January 1, 2015 by Nasheman

by Pratik Sinha

Once again the Indian Investigating agencies and Judiciary have failed the people of India by letting out a powerful political leader despite having enough evidence of involvement in a henious crime. Amit Shah has been acquitted by the Special CBI Court, Bombay, in the Sohrabuddin murder case even before the trial for the case could start.

Sohrabuddin case has been in the political limelight for over 8 years now. On 23 November, 2005, Sohrabuddin, his wife Kausarbi and Tulsi Prajapati were abducted from a bus near Sangali in Maharashtra. Sohrabuddin and Kausarbi were kept in a farm house near Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Sohrabuddin was murdered in a fake encounter on 26th November. His wife Kausarbi was allegedly raped while in custody of Gujarat Police and on 29th November was murdered as well. Within a year, on 28th December, 2006, Tulsi Prajapati was also eliminated.

Gujarat State government agreed before Supreme Court that the encounter of Sohrabuddin was a fake encounter. On April 24th, 2007, IPS officers Vanzara, Dinesh MN and Rajkumar Pandian were arrested by Rajnish Rai. However SC observed that Gujarat government was lackadaisical in its investigation and therefore transferred the case to CBI. CBI arrested Amit shah in July 2010 and thereafter on CBI’s request, the case was transferred to Bombay in 2012. Gujarat Government also admitted before the Supreme Court that Tulsi Prajapati’s encounter was fake as well. Meanwhile Amit Shah had secured himself a bail in the Sohrabuddin case after spending 3 months behind the bars. Soon after, to avoid arrest in the Tulsi Prajapati, on the best of Amit Shah, all three cases were clubbed by Supreme Court as a single case. Since Amit Shah had already secured a bail in Sohrabuddin case, he was not charged separately for Tulsi encounter case and thus avoided arrest even though he was the A-1 accused according to the CBI Chargesheet.

While it was already difficult to secure justice while Narendra Modi was the CM of Gujarat as has been observed in multiple riot and fake encounter cases, now that Modi has become the PM of India, situation has gone from worse to worst for the victims of such heinous crimes. Caged Parrot of Congress has now become Mute Parrot of BJP. It has been more than seven years since the CBI filed its chargesheet in the case and yet the trial in this case has not been started. This became the prime argument for all the cops to get bails and now all these cops who are murder accused are roaming freely in uniforms on the streets of Gujarat and have been reinstated in the police force with plum postings. This speaks a lot about the attitude of Gujarat Government who facilitate such cops.

CBI under Narendra Modi did their job by putting a very poor defence in the Amit Shah’s discharge application. While Amit Shah hired a battery of top lawyers, not even a Special Prosecutor was appointed by the CBI for this case. While Amit Shah’s lawyers argued for 3 days, CBI’s lawyer finished his argument within fifteen minutes. The facilitation by Modi Government was not limited to CBI’s role. Even Judges who were not favourable and who rebuked Amit Shah for his non-appearance in the court were instantly transferred.

But the Government and the Investigating agencies are not the only ones to be blamed. The Special CBI Court, in an unprecedented move, acquitted Amit Shah who was a triple murder accused with a mountain of evidence against him without making him face a trial and being cross-investigated. It is only during the trial stage when the witnesses and evidence are appreciated.

While acquitting Amit Shah, the Court ignored several important facts which were damning of Amit Shah’s role in the Sohrabuddin encounter. The Court did not take into account the statement of VL Solanki who was the investigating officer in this case and who had given a statement about how Amit Shah tried to influence the case. The Court has not taken in account all the phone call data and dying declaration of Tulsi Prajapati before the magistrate and NHRC.

What we have seen in Amit Shah’s case is a complete mockery of the Justice system. Jan Sangharsh Manch who has been representing Sohrabuddin’s brother Rubabuddin in this case will move the High Court to appeal against this acquittal. The fight must go on.

Not enough evidence to prosecute Amit Shah? – Statement by Jamia Teachers' Solidarity Association

January 1, 2015 by Nasheman

by Jamia Teachers’ Solidarity Association, JTSA

Even by the plummeting standards set in the last few months, the decision of the special CBI court in discharging Amit Shah, (accused no. 16 in the second chargesheet; accused no. 1 in the third chargesheet) in the Sohrabuddin encounter case, seems outrageous.

The Special CBI court without waiting for even the trial to commence, without weighing the evidence at length, seems to have suddenly concurred with the defence and the ruling party’s view that Amit Shah was caught in a political trap. Why this impatience with the process of the trial? And Shah is no ordinary accused, or accessory with a side role: he is accused of being the “king pin” or the mastermind of the triple murder.

“The entire record considered in totality”, says the court does not indicate to Shah’s role, and hence discharged him. However, what is the entire record? Even a simple, cursory looks suggest that in fact it is not hearsay but solid evidence of call details records, witness statements recorded under 161 and 164 CrPC, as well evidence of systematic and direct interference by Shah in the state CID probe into the encounter.

If the call details records were totally insignificant and proved nothing, why was there such a concerted effort to suppress all such information that pointed to Shah’s role?

The state CID investigations, which first led to the arrests of the senior police offcers, had taken on record phone call details between Shah and accused police officers. However, once the Supreme Court directed the transfer of investigation to the CBI, the CID failed to hand over the CD containing these phone conversations. A total of 331 conversations had been deleted from the record.

(“Another top cop under scanner for ‘erasing’ Amit Shah reference in CD” by Neeraj Chauhan and Ujjwala Nayudu, Indian Express, 27 July 2010.

Link here: http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/another-top-cop-under-scanner-for–erasing–amit-shah-reference-in-cd/652299)

Shah attempted to sabotage CID enquiry

IGP Gita Johri, who was made in charge of the state CID investigation, recorded in Part B of her first report, how Shah attempted to sabotage the enquiry. She has recorded that though she and the Investigating Officer Solanki did not face any “hurdle” initially, “However, as soon as the statements of witnesses pertaining to confinement of Sohrabuddin and Kausarbi in the Farm House of Shri Girish Patel at Ahmedabad came to be recorded, it came to the knowledge of Shri Vanzara and Shri Rajkumar Pandian [two of the accused officers]. It is further learnt that these officers brought the above facts to the notice of Respondent No. 2, Shri Amit Shah, Minister of State for Home, Government of Gujarat.”

It further states that Shah “brought to bear pressure” on the enquiry process, resulting in the enquiry papers being taken away from her “under the guise of scrutiny”. He “directed Shri G.C. Raigar, Additional Director General of Police, CID (Crime & Railways) to provide him with the list of witnesses, both police and private, who are yet to be contacted by CID (Crime) for recording their statement in the said enquiry. Such direction of Minister of State for Home goes beyond the scope of his office, was patently illegal and apparently designed to provide the same list to accused police officers … so as to enable them to take measures in their defence.”

(See “Geetha Johri report speaks of ‘collusion of State government’”, By Neena Vyas, 5 May 2007, The Hindu. Link here: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/article1838149.ece)

Creative Reading by the CBI Court:

The CBI court did not entertain a note written by Gita Johri, in which the sentence “systematic efforts on the part of the state government” was struck out. The CBI’s case had been that this sentence had been omitted under Shah’s political pressure, whereas the court interpreted it to mean that Johri was not happy with the investigation done by the investigating officer. This is a flight of fancy, if there can be one. In fact, it is a matter of record that Johri’s initial investigation, before she was removed, proved to be path breaking. However, when she was reinstated, she took a complete U-turn. So chaffed was the apex court with her that he chastised her, while praising the investigation of the IO Solanki. The Supreme Court observed the following:

“69. We have observed that from the record, it was found that Mr VL Solanki, an investigating officer, was proceeding in the right direction, but Ms Johri had not been carrying out the investigation in the right manner, in view of our discussions made here in above. It appears that Ms Johri had not made any reference to the second report of Solanki, and that though his first report was attached with one of her reports, the same was not forwarded to this Court.

In the present circumstances and in view of the involvement of the police officials the State in this crime, we cannot shut our eyes and direct the State police authorities to continue with the investigation and the charge-sheet and for a proper and fair investigation, we also feel that CBI should be requested to take up the investigation and submit a report in this Court within six months from the date of handing over a copy of this judgment and the records relating to this crime to them.”

(Rubabuddin Sheikh v State of Gujarat reported in (2010) 2 SCC 200, p. 217.)

The Special CBI Court cannot act as though none of this happened. The “entire record” in fact points to Shah’s involvement. The conspiracy is that of three cold-blooded murders. By terming Shah’s implication in the triple murder fake encounter case as a political conspiracy carried out by CBI under directions from a rival political party, the special CBI court has cast aspersions on the Supreme Court which was monitoring the investigations closely at all stages.

Disregarding the statements of key witnesses:

The special CBI court also disregarded the statements of key witnesses: namely, the Patel brothers, Dashrath and Raman, proprietors of the successful Popular builders. Their statements to the CBI details how money was extorted from them and how they were being forced by Vanzara and cohorts to give a statement against Sohrabuddin. The statement describes a meeting as well telephonic conversation with Shah. This has been recorded under 164 CrPC, and yet this is not deemed evidence but hearsay?

One can only say that the pusillanimity of the CBI in first, not contesting Shah’s application of exemption from appearing before the court in encounter cases, then not challenging the bail to senior police officer N.K. Amin in the Supreme Court, then responding to Shah’s voluminous discharge application and marathon three day arguments with a perfunctory 15-20 minutes argument by a junior lawyer, had already made matters clear. The die had been cast on 16th May itself, when Amit Shah delivered the rich harvest of seats for the BJP.

But what it has exposed is the rot in our institutions: the u-turn of the CBI, the reinstatement of the accused cops on duty, some of them, such as Abhay Chudasma, being given coveted posting in the Vigilance squad. Worst of all, what it has shown is the abdication of even a modicum of judicial independence.