New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS): The Supreme Court Friday issued notice to the Gujarat government on a petition by suspended police officer Sanjiv Bhatt seeking that the probe into an email hacking case against him be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

An apex court bench headed by Justice Aftab Alam issued the notice after Bhatt's counsel I.M. Syed told the court that it had already issued notice to the state government on a petition seeking transfer of the investigation following a first information report (FIR) against him by his official driver.

Additional Advocate General of the Gujarat government Tushar Mehta has filed an FIR against the Indian Police Service officer, accusing him of hacking his email account.

Bhatt said the email hacking complaint was filed by Mehta at the behest of Chief Minister Narendra Modi to falsely implicate, pressurise and intimidate him and other witnesses in the 2002 Gujarat riots.

A special court in Ahmedabad Oct 17 granted bail to the police officer who accused Modi of complicity in the communal riots.

Bhatt was arrested Sep 30 for allegedly forcing a police constable, K.D. Panth, to sign a false affidavit about his attending a meeting called by the chief minister soon after the Godhra train burning that sparked the riots.