In fresh controversy for the Congress, a news channel has aired documents that shows former home minister P Chidambaram had cleared an affidavit in 2009 which described college student Ishrat Jahan as a Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist involved in a plot to assassinate the then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. About a month later, a second affidavit was filed in the court in which all references to Ishrat's alleged terror links were missing. In defence of the changes, Mr Chidambaram had said earlier this year that it was his duty to correct the first affidavit which was drafted without his approval.

The TV channel Times Now has reported that the "Ishrat files" that were accessed through a Right to Information query, shows that  Mr Chidambaram had cleared both the affidavits.

"The media reports have now established that it was Chidambaram who has cleared the first affidavit," said the BJP's Nirmala Sitharaman in a strong attack, accusing the Congress' top leaders Sonia and Rahul Gandhi of playing with national security by conspiring with Mr Chidambaram to underplay "a terror plot that could eliminate (Mr Modi). “You are clearly admitting that you cannot fight this politically. So eliminate or allow to eliminate or encourage elimination of the leader who you are mortified of fighting politically," Ms Sitharaman alleged.

"It has been now proved that the first affidavit too was signed by Chidambaram," she said. “Sonia Gandhi cleverly worked on this. She went around the town claiming an encounter has happened. She worked together with Chidambaram and she cannot isolate herself on this,” Sitharaman said.

Junior minister for home Kiren Rijiju said that the entire Congress must shoulder blame for changing the affidavit. "There would have been some political pressure from higher ups of the Congress that such an action was taken," he said.    

Mr Chidamabaram hit back at the BJP saying in a statement, "the real issue is, even if a person is suspected to be a terrorist, can that person be killed -- as alleged -- in a fake encounter?  Please focus on the real issue.” "My public statements on why the second affidavit was filed after due and full consultation with the Home Secretary and the Attorney General are self-explanatory. I have nothing to add," he said in a statement.

By Premji