CBI filed separate chargesheets for sinister purpose: Shah to SC

Former Gujarat minister Amit Shah on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that the CBI, with "sinister design" and "malafide," has filed separate chargesheets in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh and Tulsiram Prajapati fake encounter cases since they sought his arrest and police custody yet again.

"The CBI had secured investigation in the Prajapati case only in order to explore a larger conspiracy in the Sohrabuddin case. They also said it in their affidavits and on oath that Prajapati's killing was inter-connected and integral part of the conspiracy hatched as a part of the same transaction. However, they lodged separate FIRs. CBI's inconsistent stand is only to get the petitioner's custody separately in the cases," Shah's counsel Mahesh Jethmalani submitted before a Bench led by Justice P Sathasivam.

"The CBI's stand is a malafide design to seek police custody of Shah a second time. That is the whole purpose of taking two stands. Filing of separate chargesheets, which they have admitted to be part of the same transaction, leads to abuse of the process of law," he said.

Referring to certain previous orders of the apex court, Jethmalani contended that even the court had recorded the two killings as one series of acts and what has been conducted by the CBI is "further investigation" and "not fresh investigation".

"CBI's endevaour is to keep the petitioner in custody and that is the whole purpose of taking two stands. There is a sinister purpose behind two FIRs and two chargesheets. The High Court has granted me bail in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh and Supreme Court did not interfere with it. They now want to circumvent this bail order and make sure that I approach court again to plead afresh for bail in the other case too," he argued.

Jethmalani said the CBI had maintained in the chargesheet and status report of probe in the Sohrabuddin case that Prajapati was gunned down because he was the eyewitness in the case of killing of Sohrabuddin and his wife Kauser Bi in November 2005.

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