Ishrat case culprits should be brought to book: Congress

Soon after the CBI Wednesday formally filed charges in a Gujarat court in the Ishrat Jahan alleged shootout case, the Congress said the culprits should be brought to book.

"The murder of an innocent person leaves a trail to the accused. The CBI charge sheet says the encounter was fake. We want the law to take its own course and the culprits should be brought to book," Congress spokesperson Meem Afzal told reporters here.

A Mumbai college girl Ishrat Jahan, Pranesh Pillai alias Javed Shaikh, Amjad Ali Rana and Zeeshan Johar were killed by Gujarat Police in a shootout in 2004 in Ahmedabad.

Police said the four were part of a plot to assassinate Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Congress leader from Gujarat Madhusudan Mistry targeted Modi, who was then holding the home portfolio and had his confidante Amit Shah as junior home minister.

"Criminal cases should be filed against those in power then. The truth is coming out. The question is, who ordered the fake shoot out?" Mistry told reporters.

The Bharatiya Janata Party, which rules Gujarat, said the Ishrat Jahan shootout was not "fake" and was conducted on the basis of information received from the Intelligence Bureau.