Rajnish Rai, a senior police officer who played a leading role in unravelling the Gujarat fake encounter case, was on Thursday aburptly removed from the investigations.

The investigations will now be headed by Geeta Johri, IG (CID), who has been brought back into the case on a day when the Supreme Court asked the state government to report why she was shifted.

Johri is also credited with having done much to nail the three senior IPS officers responsible for the killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, an alleged extortionist who was dubbed a terrorist, and done away with.

The verbal order for shunting out Rai, the supervisory officer of CID (Crime) who arrested the three IPS officers D G Vanzara, Rajkumar Pandiyan and Dinesh Kumar M N in connection with the fake encounter case, was given on Thursday evening.

"Yes, I have got oral orders to discontinue (the probe) in the case", Rai told PTI. He did not elaborate.

Last week, Gujarat Director General of Police P C Pande had dashed off a confidential letter to Rai asking him to seek the permission of superiors before making any further arrests in the sensitive case.

Peeved at the DGP clipping his powers to probe the case, Rai had shot off a reply to Pande expressing his displeasure and wanting to move out of the investigations if the curbs on him remained.

Rai is understood to have not informed any of his superiors before arresting Vanzara, Pandiyan and Rajasthan cadre officer Dinesh Kumar.