Ahmedabad, July 1
The Central Bureau of Investigation is unlikely to name Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his close associate Amit Shah as accused in its charge-sheet in the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case. Sources say the investigation agency may also drop CBI director Rajendra Kumar from the list of accused.

The sources confirmed that the agency would stick to the commitment it had given to the Gujarat High Court to file the charge-sheet in the case by July 4, but would disappoint Modi critics by not naming him or his deputy in it. Shah has been considered one of the “masterminds” of the encounter and is among the prime accused in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter.

The agency is likely to inform the high court that it had been unable to gather enough and conclusive evidence against Modi or Shah to name them as accused, they say.

The agency feels that naming Modi or his deputy at this stage could prove counterproductive as the Gujarat strongman is expected to be nominated as NDA’s prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 General Election.

The CBI is also under pressure from the Union Home Ministry not to drag any of the central intelligence officers in the case. As a result, Rajendra Kumar may also be kept out of the list of the accused on the plea that the investigation against the officer is incomplete.

The CBI had earlier sought to summon Kumar for questionin.