Responding to the National Investigation Agency's (NIA) clean chit to Lt. Col. Purohit, an accused in the Samjhauta blast case, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday said, "The manner in which the Congress-led UPA government pressurised officers to get things done, which is not good. They should have not done it."
When asked did he want to say that in the Samjauta blast and Malegaon cases officials were forced to make cases, Rijiju said, "Such things happened during the Congress' regime, but there is no need to go into the depth of the case and disclose it ;there are many issues which are sub judice and will come before you soon. But our government will not pressurise anyone; whatever happens will happen but according to rules."
"It has become clear from Home Minister Rajnath Singh's statement in Parliament and what we have seen in the Home Ministry that the previous government, especially former home minister P. Chidambaram, used position (power) in a very wrong manner," he added.
Meanwhile, welcoming NIA director Sharad Kumar's statement, Archana Purohit, the wife of Lieutenant Colonel Purohit, expressed hope that her husband would be released at the earliest with all charges against him being dropped.
"The statement given by the NIA chief about giving a clean chit to my husband is in connection with Samjhauta blast case and not in Malegaon blast. During the trial in the Samjhauta blast case, two witnesses had changed their statements and that is why this issue has raised," Archana told ANI.
"I hope his innocence is proved soon and he is released," she added.
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The NIA chief had yesterday said that Lieutenant Colonel Purohit was not involved in the Samjhauta express blast case, adding that no evidence was found against him.
Lieutenant Colonel Purohit, who is one of the main accused in the Samjhauta and Malegaon blasts cases, is presently in jail for over seven years.
He had written to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on April 4 requesting restoration of his honour.
In his letter, he claimed he was falsely implicated and has been behind the bars for more than seven years now.
The case pertains to a criminal conspiracy, which resulted in bomb blasts in the Samjhauta Express train near Panipat in Haryana on February 18, 2007.
The blast and the consequent fire in the train resulted in the loss of 68 lives and injuries to 12 train passengers, including women and children, travelling in the train.