New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday alleged “direct interference” by the Prime Minister’s Office in the “sudden reversal” of the NIA’s stand in the 2008 Malegaon blast case and sought a Supreme Court-monitored probe into it.
After the Malegaon case, the Congress said that the government may “destroy” the 2007 Samjhauta blast case, alleging the NIA was “working” towards that.
It urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to uphold his constitutional oath and discharge his duties irrespective of his “ideology”.
Claiming the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had become the “Namo Investigation Agency”, whose sole purpose was to give “clean chits” to those linked to the RSS and the BJP by hook or crook, senior Congress leader Anand Sharma, its Rajya Sabha deputy leader, said the NIA’s fresh chargesheet put a question mark on India’s commitment to fighting terrorism.
He accused the government of “consistently” trying to save those who followed its ideology and faced charges, and added: “There was direct interference from the PMO... From his (PM’s) office, I have said earlier too and everything is proved, a dirty tricks department is being run.”
Mr Sharma, seeking a Supreme Court-monitored probe, said the court should “seize” all papers on the probe, including confessional statements, chargesheet and the correspondence between the government, NIA, attorney-general, NIA, and that between the home ministry and the PMO.
Mr Sharma, expressing fears that the NIA might “destroy” the Samjhauta Express blast case, said Col. P.S. Purohit, an accused in the case, had written a letter to national security adviser Ajit Doval on January 6, and on January 8 it reached the home ministry and on January 9 the MHA “started working” on it. He added: “I have not seen such speed in the movement of files in the government.”
