NIA says 'confidentiality pact' means it can't share Headley info with CBI

The National Investigation Agency is averse to sharing the confessional statement of 26/11 terror accused David Headley with CBI for its probe into the Ishrat Jahan encounter case, citing a confidentiality pact between India and the United States.



The Home Ministry is caught in a catch-22 situation over providing the statement of Headley to CBI, owing to the undertaking given to the FBI that the same would not be shared with any other probe agency other than the NIA.



The CBI wants access to the statement of David Headley (right) to assess claims that Ishrat Jahan (left) had links to terrorist organisation LeT



The CBI had written to the NIA seeking access to the statement, to check the veracity of reports claiming that 2004 Gujarat encounter victim Ishrat had links with Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba.



The NIA has informed the Home Ministry about the CBI's demand and conveyed that it cannot share Headley's statement with the CBI as the FBI had agreed and arranged the meeting with Headley in 2010 under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, with a condition that the NIA will not share his statement with anyone.

NIA has made it clear that it could share the information provided the government gave a go-ahead for it, official sources said.



According to the sources, sharing of Headley's statement would amount to flouting the commitment given to the US authorities and this step is fraught with a danger as America may not cooperate with India in future.



The NIA has cited the confidentiality clause with the US government in the Headley case, according to which evidence collected in the 26/11 probe cannot be used in any other case.



