Ashok Gehlot has taken a swipe at Amit Shah over his "CBI pressure" comments
Rajasthan Chief Minister and Congress leader Ashok Gehlot has dared Home Minister Amit Shah to name the officers of a central agency who the BJP leader alleged had put pressure on him to frame his party colleague and the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in a fake encounter case.
Mr Gehlot said if the Delhi Police can ask Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to give details of women in Jammu and Kashmir who have alleged sexual harassment, the same cops can surely ask Mr Shah to give the names of the officers who wanted him to frame Narendra Modi before he became Prime Minister in 2014.
During the Bharat Jodo Yatra, Mr Gandhi had alleged "women were still being sexually assaulted" in the Union Territory. After the yatra ended and 45 days later, a Delhi Police team knocked on Mr Gandhi's doors thrice in five days, which the Congress termed unprecedented harassment. The Congress alleged the cops won't do any such thing if BJP leaders gave controversial comments at public events.
"What did the women tell Rahul Gandhi in Kashmir? That they have been abused, harassed. And what happened after that - Delhi police arrived at Rahul Gandhi's door. Rahul said he will respond to the cops' notice, but the police again arrived at his home," Mr Gehlot told NDTV.
"So will the Delhi police also send a notice to Amit Shah for saying that the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) was putting pressure on him to frame Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an alleged fake encounter case in Gujarat when he was being questioned by the probe agency during the Congress-led UPA government. That's why I am asking, will the Delhi Police question Amit Shah like they questioned Rahul Gandhi? I think they should," Mr Gehlot said.
Mr Shah yesterday at the 'News 18 Rising India' programme alleged the CBI had put pressure on him to frame PM Modi in a fake encounter case in Gujarat back when the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was in power. The Home Minister was replying to a question on the opposition's allegations that central agencies have been sent to harass them frequently with false cases.
"The CBI put pressure on me to frame Modi ji (when he was Gujarat Chief Minister) in a fake encounter case during the Congress government," Mr Shah said.
The BJP has also often cited alleged misuse of central agencies when the Congress was in power.