IB: CBI didn’t verify all Ishrat case facts

Attacking the CBI chargesheet in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case, the Intelligence Bureau (IB) has claimed in the Supreme Court that it was filed without fully verifying all the facts.

The IB, in an affidavit before the top court filed in response to a petition moved by Gujarat police official NK Amin who is an accused in the case, claimed: “Despite full cooperation extended by the IB in the course of investigation in the case, the CBI seems to have filed a chargesheet in this case implicating four IB officials without fully verifying all the relevant facts.”

The CBI charged one retired IB official — Rajinder Kumar headed its Ahmedabad branch at the time of Ishrat encounter and three serving officials — P Mittal, MK Sinha and Rajiv Wankhede — in the case along with around a dozen Gujarat police officials.

According to CBI chargesheet, two IB assets were engaged by Rajinder Kumar and Gujarat police official GL Singhal for assisting them in managing the illegal custody of Zeeshan Johar, one of alleged Pakistani terrorist killed in the encounter along with Ishrat, in the last week of April, 2004. But the IB says, according to intelligence inputs, Johar, sent to India by LeT commander Muzammil, reached Ahmedabad only on May 15, 2004.