If the number of high-profile encounters that Gujarat witnessed post the Godhra incident was any indication to go by, then state chief minister Narendra Modi probably was the country’s most-wanted politician on the hit list of subversive elements.
In fact, the slew of encounters started after the Modi-led BJP swept the Assembly polls in wake of the Godhra aftermath. And the one common factor among the encounters, at least in the important once, was that they were all militants wanting to kill Mr Modi.
Interestingly, at least four such encounter cases — Sohrabuddin Sheikh, Tulsiram Prajapti, Ishrat Jahan and Sadiq Jamal — are now under the CBI’s scanner. Former state home minister Amit Shah and as many as 20 police officers, including IPS officials, have so far been arrested in these cases.
“It seems the state government wanted to cash in on this sense of insecurity prevailing among the majority community after the Godhra incident. In fact, by these encounters perhaps Mr Modi wanted to prove that he is being targeted for taking a hardline against a particular minority community. And a trigger happy state police was more than willing to oblige the chief minister,” a former state intelligence official remarked.
Further, sources in the state police claim that some officials also saw this as an opportunity to get close to the chief minister but also to get out of turn promotions and police medals for distinguished and meritorious service.
For instance, in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case the state government has already admitted that the guilty policemen did this for out of turn promotions. But what the state government has not been able to satisfactorily explain is as to why Amit Shah was then involved in the incident. Human right activists in the state also claim that these encounters were only aimed at helping Mr Modi consolidate his position.