New Delhi

BJP today dragged the top Congress brass into the line of fire over the then UPA government’s “flip-flop” on Ishrat Jahan “fake” encounter killing case to “frame” Narendra Modi and demanded a probe into their role besides that of the then Home Minister P Chidambaram.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad also questioned the CBI probe into the alleged fake encounter, in which Ishrat and her aides were killed, alleging that the entire government machinery was abused.

At a press conference at the party office, he cited the statement of the then Home Secretary G K Pillai and the then Under Secretary R V S Mani to seek a probe.

“Enough suspicious circumstances have arisen from the statements of the Home Secretary, confirmed by the then under secretary that the decision was taken by Mr Chidambaram by bypassing them by changing the complete complexion (of the case).

“There was a consistent campaign against Mr Modi that he needs to be framed, Amit Shah needs to be framed by hook or by by crook. And the entire government machinery was abused. BJP demands that the Government of India investigate this. We are demanding that a fair inquiry be done on the entire flip flop on the Ishrat Jahan case,” he said.

BJP’s accusation was that Chidambaram did on the directions of the Congress high command, he said making an apparent reference to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and her deputy Rahul Gandhi.

Asked if BJP sought a fresh probe into the fake encounter case, he said he will leave it to the report of inquiry he had demanded on behalf of BJP.

The probe should include, he said, who was pressurising whom and what impact it made on the country’s security apparatus and its morale.

“Did Congress party compromise with the national security due to its hate for Modi? A quick probe should be done,” Prasad said.

Asked if he wanted a judicial probe, he said “we are not closing that option.”

The first affidavit filed by the government had said that Ishrat and her aides were LeT operatives and there was no need for a CBI probe into their killing, he said, adding that the second affidavit changed the stand, facilitating a CBI probe that led to the arrest of several Gujarat police officials.

PTI