Click to play videoNew Delhi: The Election Commission (EC) has decided to issue a notice to Narendra Modi after his justification of the Sohrabuddin fake encounter, following complaints by social activist Teesta Setalvad.
The EC has sought a reply from Modi by Saturday. The EC held a meeting on the matter on Thursday after receiving a CD of the speech delivered at Mangrol from the Surat Collector.
In a campaign speech in Mangrol, South Gujarat, Modi mentioned the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case, keeping in mind the polarised electorate in the state.
He said: "Congress is saying that Modi got the encounter done. I'm telling the Congress, you have a Government at the Centre. If u have the guts, come and hang me. Sohrabuddin is the one who attacked the police with AK47s on our soil. Then what does the Gujarat Police do?"
"Congress in Gujarat should explain to the people what should be done to a man who stored illegal arms and ammunition. You tell me, what should have been done to Sohrabuddin?"
He managed to whip up such a communal frenzy with his words that the crowd begin to chant "kill him, kill him" in response to Modi's question on what should have been done to Sohrabuddin.
And when the people shouted "kill him", Modi said: "Well, that is it. Do I have to take Sonia Gandhi's permission to do this? Hang me if I have done anything wrong."
On Thursday, at another rally in Katlal, Modi squarely blamed Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi for his controversial justification of Sohrabuddin Sheikh's death in a fake encounter.
He also said that Pakistan was a direct threat to the state and that Bangladeshi migrants were creating problems — a toned down version of his earlier vitriolic rally rhetoric.
The Gujarat government's counsel in the case, K T S Tulsi has already said he will withdraw from the case.
Efforts are on to convince K T S Tulsi, but the state government says that if he doesn't agree then there are plenty of other lawyers who would take up the case.
Meanwhile, the BJP says that they won't comment on the lawyer deciding not to continue with the brief. The party says it's a matter between the Gujarat government and the lawyer concerend.
Eminent lawyer Prashant Bhushan is approaching the Supreme Court, asking it to name Modi as a co-accused in the case.
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