Will consider PIL demanding court-monitored SIT probe into against CBI officials: SC

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi considered the submission of lawyer Prashant Bhushan, appearing for NGO Common Cause that there were wider issues of corruption affecting the probe agency and the PIL needed to be heard urgently.

The Supreme Court Thursday said it would consider according to an urgent hearing to a PIL seeking court-monitored SIT probe into the allegations of corruption against various CBI officials, including Rakesh Asthana who was divested of his responsibilities as the agency's special director.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi considered the submission of lawyer Prashant Bhushan, appearing for NGO Common Cause that there were wider issues of corruption affecting the probe agency and the PIL needed to be heard urgently.

The bench, which also comprised Justices S K Kaul and K M Joseph, asked Bhushan to provide details and said it would consider granting the urgent hearing on the petition.

The NGO has sought relief including court-monitored Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into allegations of corruption against CBI officials including Asthana, who along with CBI Director Alok Kumar Verma had been divested of powers and sent on leave.

The unprecedented internal feud between CBI Director and Asthana had reached the top court on Wednesday which agreed to hear on October 26 the former's plea assailing the Centre's decision to divest him of duties and sending him on leave.

Verma has assailed the decision of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) giving Joint Director M Nageswara Rao, a 1986 batch Odisha-cadre IPS officer, the charge as head of the probe agency.

The feud between Verma and Asthana escalated recently leading to registration of an FIR against Asthana and others including Deputy Superintendent of Police Devender Kumar, who is in the CBI custody in an alleged bribery case.

The FIR was lodged on a written complaint of Satish Babu Sana on October 15. It alleged that Kumar, the IO in a case, repeatedly called him to the CBI office to harass and compel him to pay a bribe of Rs 5 crore for giving him a clean chit.

Asthana and Kumar both challenged the FIR in the Delhi High Court, which on Tuesday ordered CBI to maintain status quo on the criminal proceedings against Asthana.

The Centre, the CVC and the DoPT intervened and decided to send the CBI Director and the Special Director on leave.

The plea has made Centre, CBI, Central Vigilance Commission, Asthana, Verma, Rao as parties in the case.

It said: "Even if there is allegation of corruption against Verma, as stated in the removal order, the CVC, in the guise of power of superintendence, could not have withdrawn the work from the Director CBI and handed over to a new officer without the consent of the committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition and the Chief Justice of India.

"The impugned orders make it apparent that the aforesaid decisions have been taken without consultation with the aforementioned selection committee as is mandated by the law."

It further said that "neither Verma could have been divested with the work nor could Rao have been asked to take over the charge of the Director CBI and function as interim Director without consulting the Selection Committee mentioned in amended Section 4 A of the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act".

The plea claimed that there are multiple investigations pending against Asthana and his continuation as the Special Director of CBI is "improper, illegal and contrary to all principles of law, justice, public morality and has the effect of hampering with a free, independent, fearless and thorough investigation being carried out against him" in multiple cases.

The petition also points out that officer who was investigating the case against Asthana has been transferred to Port Bliar with immediate effect in a completely "malafide" manner on October 24 and the whole team working under the CBI Director has been transferred out of Delhi with immediate effect.