Records show Karkare spoke to me: Digvijaya

New Delhi: Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday claimed once again that slain Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare had spoken to him on the night of November 26, 2008 just a few hours before he (Karkare) was killed in a gunfight with Pakistani terrorists in Mumbai.

Addressing the media in New Delhi, Singh claimed that he received a call from the ATS landline number on a mobile phone registered with Madhya Pradesh Congress unit. Singh reportedly produced record of the call made by Karkare to him on November 26, 2008 and demanded apology from Maharashtra Home Minister RR Patil.

"I am being targeted because I pointed out the issue of Hindu terror groups. Mumbai Police selectively leaked information that no calls were made by Digvijaya Singh to Karkare. Even RR Patil made these claims. I now have got the call records to prove that I spoke to Karkare on the ATS landline. Those who called me a liar, anti-national and Pakistani agents should apologise to me," said Singh.

"I was sad when telecom department said that it did not maintain call records older than a year. But even then I pursued the matter and have managed to get the call records which I have already distributed," the Congress leader said at the press conference.

"I called you (RR Patil) on 31.12.2010 objecting to your statement in Maharashtra Assembly that there was no call record on Karkare's phone on 26.11.2008. Your statement showed me in poor light and I was shown as lying to the media. Records show that there was a call made from the number 09425015461 (which is registered with Madhya Pradesh Congress) to the number 022-23087336, which is registered on your ATS website. The call was made at 5.44 PM on 26-11-2008. So I ask you to apologise to me," he said.

"I was interested in Malegaon blasts issue because most of those who died belonged to Madhya Pradesh. I congratulate NIA (National Investigative Agency) and Home Ministry who investigated the blast case promptly," he said.

"Why there has been no major blast after Malegaon blast? Since the culprits in Malegaon blast have been arrested, such incidents have gone down. We want investigation to be carried out by National Investigation Agency only," he said

Singh added that he had no doubt that 26/11 terror strikes were carried out by Pakistani terrorists.

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