Was there 'message from top' in Malegaon case, asks Cong

Congress today wondered if there was a message from "the top" to Rohini Salian to go soft in Malegan blast case as public prosecutor and alleged that BJP leadership had tried to "bargain" with then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh "not to pursue cases against Hindu extremists".
Demanding "removal" of Director General of NIA over the episode, the party also sought answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh over remarks of Salian, that she was under pressure from NIA to go soft in the case.
Scaling up the attack, Digvijay Singh said on Twitter, "Not unexpected as BJP leadership had tried to bargain with Dr Manmohan Singh not to pursue cases where Hindu Extremists were accused."

In another tweet, he recalled, "Rajnath Singh ji had visited Pragya Singh Thakur an accused in terror cases in jail."
Alleging a "message from top" in the episode, Singh said,"Would PM and HM Govt of India please clarify whether NIA Officer acting on his own or under instructions from Home Ministry?
"Rohini Salian Special Public Prosecutor dealing Malegaon 2008 blast case asked by NIA Officer to go slow and soft. Message from top!"

Party spokesperson Shobha Oza said,"This shows a form of undeclared Emergency".
Another party spokesperson Ajay Maken demanded the probe by National Investigation Agency should be monitored by the Supreme Court or High Court henceforth, as Congress has "no faith" in the ongoing investigations by the agency under the Home Ministry.

"It is a very serious matter. NIA Director General (Sharad Kumar) should be immediately removed because he is responsible for it. The Supreme Court or the High Court should monitor the NIA investigation directly.
"We no longer have faith in the probe in the case being carried by NIA under Government of India or Home Ministry," Maken said.
He also referred to the death of Mumbai cop Hemant Karkare during Mumbai terror strike in 2011, noting that the officer was also probing the Malegaon case.
Maken, in a press statement, demanded that the Prime Minister and the Home Minister must answer in public domain their role in "compromising the integrity" of an on-going trial in the 2008 Malegaon blast case.