New Delhi, Apr 7: BJP today cited the observations of a Rajasthan High Court judge that the CBI should be shut down to insist that the Congress governments at the Centre and in Rajasthan were “misusing” the agency to target its leader Rajendra Rathore in an encounter case.
BJP has stood firm behind party's Chief Whip in Rajasthan Assembly Rathore, who has been arrested after the CBI named him as an accused in its supplementary charge sheet in the Dara Singh “fake” encounter case that took place in 2006.
The party maintains that Congress is “misusing” CBI yet again to target its political opponents. Rathore was named an accused only on April 6, 2012- six years after the encounter.
“Yesterday, much to our shock, the Rajasthan High Court has made an observation in such sharp focus putting the CBI as an organisation which is being repeatedly misused and that there is no faith left in it. A learned judge even went to the extent of stating that it is probably time the agency needs to be shut down,” BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.
She was quick to underline that the BJP understands that this is just an observation and not a judgement from the Rajasthan High Court. BJP also clarified that it was in no way attempting to influence the courts in the encounter case.
However, Sitharaman insisted that Congress has been misusing the CBI repeatedly in several cases to pressure its political adversaries and win support of parties. She maintained that other than the BJP even some regional and smaller parties have aired similar views about CBI.
“The Congress has been using the CBI to win the support of other parties to win confidence votes and pass its finance bills. They put pressure on the politically smaller parties to draw their support,” the BJP spokesperson said.
Retracing the history of the Dara Singh case, BJP said the encounter took place in October 2006 and an FIR was lodged by the Rajasthan police. Neither the FIR nor the subsequent charge sheet named Rathore as an accused.
In 2008, when BJP was voted out of power and Ashok Gehlot took over as Chief Minister of Rajasthan, the Congress government handed over the case to CBI.
The agency's first charge sheet- filed in 2008- also did not name Rathore. However, on April 6, 2008, CBI filed a supplementary charge sheet in which Rathore was named as an accused apparently as he was in constant touch on the phone with ADG A K Jain- an accused in the encounter- during that time.
“Rathore's name finds no place even in the two petitions filed by Dara Singh's widow,” Sitharaman said.One of these is a writ petition filed in the Rajasthan High Court.
“BJP believes evidences in this case have been fabricated. His name has been added only as an afterthought to please the political masters,” Sitharaman said.
The party alleged that Gehlot government has failed on all fronts and is targeting it to divert attention.
“In the Gopalgarh masjid attack, government almost held the state to ransom. In the Banwari Devi murder case in which it was not clear if the minister (Mahipal Maderna) accused in the case will be arrested,” Sitharaman said.
BJP also alleged that Rathore has been indicted due to caste factors.
“The government is not taking any steps. It is probably watching the clashes between castes (Rajputs and Jats). A divide and rule policy is being used,” she said.
