Ishrat case: Chidambaram played with country's security, says Kiren Rijiju

Maintaining that the question, as to whether former union home minister P. Chidambaram had signed the affidavits in the Ishrat Jahan case is already in the public domain, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday trained his guns on the Congress and alleged that there could be more people involved in it.

Rijiju said the basic question that arises is how a home minister could absolve a terrorist on his own.

"Chidambaram Saheb was the home minister, who was responsible for India's security. And if the home minister starts playing with the country's security, what will happen to the nation. I am asking how can a home minister absolve a terrorist on his own, there must be a grand design behind that, in which more people will be involved. A responsible home minister can't play such a big game with the nation's security," Rijiju said.

"I want to say that the planned manner in which the Congress Party coined and used the term 'Bhagwa Atankwaad' (Saffron Terror) and the way Chidambarm acted as the home minister, they appear to be connected," he added.

Rijiju accused the Congress Party of playing with the nation's security.

"We too did not trust it initially, but as things unfolded before us we have come to know that they have played a big game with the country's security. We are looking into it and will take action, but the Congress Party should answer," Rijiju said.

"It has become clear from Home Minister Rajnath Singh's statement in Parliament and what we have seen in the Home Ministry that the previous government, especially former home minister P. Chidambaram, used position (power) in a very wrong manner," he added.

Responding to allegations that the Ishrat encounter was 'fake', he said: "It's a different issue. When Osama-bin -Laden was killed by America's special force in Pakistan, did anybody question that the encounter was wrong or was not according to law. Whatever happens with terrorism is a different issue."

Meanwhile, BJP has questioned the Congress Party's silence over reports claiming that Chidambaram had signed the first affidavit in the Ishrat case, and accused the grand old party of hatching a conspiracy against the people of India with a political agenda.

"Latest revelation on Ishrat Jahan has actually nailed Chidambaram and the Congress because of the dubious way with which they wanted to implicate Narendra Modi. They have done great disservice to the country," Javadekar told ANI.

"It is a conspiracy against the people of India. This needs to be taken to its logical conclusion. And I am wondering why Chidambaram and Rahul Gandhi are silent. This was a conspiracy with a political agenda," he added.

Media reports revealed that Chidambaram had in fact signed the first affidavit, which declared Ishrat and three others as terrorists, but gave all four a clean chit a month later as serious amendments were made in the second affidavit also signed by him.

The first affidavit in the encounter case stated that Ishrat was a LeT operative, who was part of a plot to assassinate the then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. Chidambaram had initially claimed that the first affidavit declaring Ishrat and three others as terrorists was filed in the court without his approval, adding that he had made some editorial changes to avoid misinterpretation when the matter was brought to his notice.

Chidambaram, however, completely altered his stance in the second affidavit, saying that intelligence inputs on Ishrat and the three others did not constitute conclusive proof and favoured a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in the encounter.