Security for CBI counsel a concern

CBI director Ranjit Sinha has asked the Union home ministry (MHA) to provide security to Ejaz Khan, the agency’s counsel in Ishrat Jahan and Sadiq Jamal encounter cases. Rajesh Ahuja reports.

CBI director Ranjit Sinha has asked the Union home ministry (MHA) to provide security to Ejaz Khan, the agency’s counsel in Ishrat Jahan and Sadiq Jamal encounter cases.

HT Image

According to sources, in a letter to the Union home ministry, Sinha said “there has been ‘critical reporting of Gujarat encounter cases in the media’ and Ejaz Khan is representing the agency in court in these cases. Besides this, he keeps on travelling to many states, including Delhi, in connection with hearings and meetings pertaining to the cases. Therefore, he should be provided security.”

The CBI chief has also asked for security to Samdeep Tamgade, an agency SP posted in Nagpur, who is handling investigation in Tulsiram Prajapati and Sohrabbuddin Sheikh encounter cases.

The CBI is handling four encounter cases of Tulsiram Prajapati, Sohrabbuddin Sheikh, Ishrat Jahan and Sadiq Jamal at the moment.

Earlier, the agency sources had claimed that its SP Sandeep Tamgade has received threats due to his association with probe into encounter cases but there is no mention of any threat — received through phone calls or letters — in the CBI director’s letter to the union home ministry.

Even in the 2G spectrum case too, the CBI had asked for security for material witnesses in the case.

The agency had also received information that its documents in the 2G case were under threat from the Mumbai underworld. After that, a special arrangement was made to secure these case documents on the court premises.