CBI closure report on Tytler explosive: Phoolka

Senior advocate H. S. Phoolka on Thursday termed the closure report filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation against senior Congress leader Jagdish Tytler as 'explosive', and called for the latter's immediate arrest.

"The CBI closure report is explosive... Clear offences carried out by Tytler have been mentioned in the closure report. He has been forcing witnesses, he is indulging in hawala transactions and the death of a witness is also suspicious: he changed his statement twice and after that he died," Phoolka told ANI.

"In view of all this, what has come out in the closure report is that Tytler should be arrested immediately; the way he has been indulging in bribing and forcing the witnesses and sending hawala money... all three things must be recorded and he must be arrested immediately," he added.

Phoolka also called for an investigation into arms dealer Abhishek Verma's allegations against Tytler and former prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.

"The closure report was filed by the CBI in 2009, but before that, the agency's DIG had said that a chargesheet must be filed against Tytler. But the CBI director had overruled the decision and decided to file the closure report. Now, due to Abhishek Verma's statement, it comes out that it was due to the then-prime minister's intervention that the closure report was filed. That also must be thoroughly investigated," he said.

Former union minister Tytler is accused of inciting the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in the national capital after the assassination of the then-prime minister Indira Gandhi, a charge he denies.