The BJP on Wednesday attacked the Congress and the erstwhile UPA Government for changing the affidavit in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case and alleged that the decision was taken at the “political level” involving the then Home Minister P Chidambaram, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and asked the Opposition to come clean on it.
The Congress on its part defended Chidambaram with Sonia claiming the party was being attacked since it was in the Government when the affidavit was changed. Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu charged that CBI was misused by the then UPA Government to harass its political opponent and “defame” the then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, who is now Prime Minister. Naidu said the issue needs to be debated and discussed in Parliament and appropriate action needs to be taken.
“First it was lashkar-e-Tayyeba’s website, secondly it was David Headley’s statement and thirdly it was Central Government affidavit in the Gujarat High Court and Gujarat Police also said it. IB has said it. In spite of all these, they changed the affidavit” he said.
“Now another startling revelation by former Home Secretary GK Pillai (who is) saying that the decision to change the affidavit was taken at the political level. Political level means the then Home Minister P Chidambaram, Prime Minister and Congress chief. These threewere at helm of affairs,” Naidu said.
He also cited former Under Secretary in Home Ministry RVS Mani’s statement that he was forced and tortured.
“The torturing of Government officer by other agency at the behest of political leadership, you can understand how much misuse was done by the previous Government with regard to CBI. How political opponents were harassed. The entire plan was to stop Narendra Modi, defame Narendra Modi, implicate Narendra Modi,” he said.
“The Congress should come clean instead of simply denying it. What do you sayIJ What is the justification for change in affidavitIJ Do you have an answerIJ explain,” he said.
Meanwhile, Sonia on Wednesday told her party MPs that former Home Minister P Chidambaram has already explained his position, adding that the grand old party has been targeted since it was in the government then.
“Chidambaram has already explained. We have been targeted since we were in government,” she said at a Congress strategy meeting here.