Former Gujarat Minister of State for Home Affairs Amit Shah appeared to be in further trouble with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) planning to approach the Supreme Court for shifting the trial of the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case outside the state.

The CBI may seek permission of the Supreme Court to shift the trial of the case outside Gujarat to insure free and fair trial.

The CBI is also likely to approach the apex court to shift Mr Shah outside Gujarat after his arrest for interrogation in the case.

According to CBI sources, keeping in view the political clout Mr Shah has in Gujarat, no prosecution witness will dare to depose against him in the court.

The CBI is likely to file transfer petition in the Supreme Court in the coming week.

It has already filed a charge sheet against Mr Shah charging him with the offence of criminal conspiracy to murder, abduction and destruction of evidence in the Sohrabuddin case.

It has also charged Mr Shah with running an extortion racket in the state when he was the MoS and alleged that Sohrabuddin was killed along with his wife Kausar Bi in November 2005 by the Gujarat Police on his order.

Tulsi Ram Prajapati, the sole eyewitness in the case, was also allegedly killed by Gujarat police after some time.

According to the charge sheet, Shorabuddin himself was a part of the extortion gang allegedly being run by Mr Shah.

Meanwhile, Mr Shah, who has gone underground, is likely to surrender before the CBI today and subject himself to custodial interrogation.

Mr Shah has denied all allegations against him and alleged that his reply to the allegations was not accepted by the CBI and the charge sheet against him was already ready and according to him 40 AK 47 rifles were recovered from a well in the Shorabudddin’s house.

He has also threatened to expose the CBI in court and has asserted that he is not scared of ‘false’ cases filed against him.

Eminent lawyer F S Nariman has also said, in a seminar, that Mr Shah must surrender before the CBI.

UNI