Fourteen policemen are languishing in Gujarat jail in connection with the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case. Their loyalty to their home minister was unquestionable and some of them who have been in jail for three years still vouch for him. However, it’s a different story altogether for Amit Shah, Gujarat’s former minister of state for home.
None of the policemen have yet named the minister or outlined his involvement, but in the case of minister, he is clear that he is innocent and has shifted the blame for killing Sohrabuddn in a fake encounter to the police.
“Politicians have dual personalities and easily adapt themselves to different situations. Amit Shah has just done that,” a senior Gujarat IPS officer said.
So the fiery ideologically driven Shah, who walked into the BJP press conference on Sunday morning to explain himself before surrendering to the CBI. was different from the Amit shah, the accused who has sought bail.
At the Sunday press conference, Mr Shah had claimed that Sohrabuddin was a dreaded terrorist and a huge cache of arms was recovered from him. Sohrabuddin had more weapons than what Kasab had. He was a terrorist and the CBI is working at the instructions of someone after the Gujarat police finished off this dreaded terrorist, he had said.
However, in his bail application submitted to a local court, there is reportedly no mention of the word terrorist when Sohrabuddin has been referred to.
At the media briefing Mr Shah had praised the Gujarat police and its role in countering terrorism in the state.
In his bail application, Mr Shah has contended that Sohrabuddin was killed and then shown as eliminated in an encounter by the Rajasthan and Gujarat police. Ironically he has also said the Gujarat government has made very strong case and that is the reason several police officers including three IPS officers have not been able to obtain bail even from the apex court.