New Delhi:
After an explosive revelation that Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi was named in a cop's testimony on the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case, the BJP has alleged a 'scam' to discredit Mr Modi.
Gujarat police officer DH Goswami, whose statement features in the CBI's chargesheet filed this week, claims that Gujarat crime branch officer DG Vanzara said Mr Modi had signed off on the staged encounter.
Mr Goswami claimed he was privy to the planning of the conspiracy to kill Ishrat Jahan and 3 others, and Vanzara had said he had got approval from the Chief Minister and then Minister of Home, Amit Shah, a close aide of Mr Modi.
Mr Goswami's statement was made in the presence of a magistrate but so far no agency is backing his claim.
The BJP calls it a 'political ploy'. The party's Meenakshi Lekhi said statements made before magistrates are taken back day in an day out. She called it a 'reinvestigation scam' and said it would be brought to the notice of people
CBI sources say they are examining the possibility of a larger conspiracy but appear not to be taking Mr Goswami's statement very seriously for now.
Modi and Amit Shah were not named directly by the CBI, which has also not commented on Ishrat's alleged terror links.