Special court pulls up CBI, summons joint director for investigation in graft case involving ex-directors
Oct 28, 2020
New Delhi [India], October 28 : A special CBI court on Tuesday pulled up the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for not answering court queries, while summoning CBI's investigation officer and concerned joint director in a graft case against its former chiefs related to meat exporters Moin Akhtar Qureshi and others.
Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal stated, "It is expected from the premier investigating agency that they would candidly answer the queries/issues raised by this Court provisionally on the last date of hearing, considering the fact that some of the queries pertain to the role of two of its Ex-Directors AP Singh and Ranjit Sinha along with the alleged middle man Moin Akhtar Qureshi."
"....However, considering the peculiar circumstances let the IO along with the concerned Joint Director, CBI, who is supervising the investigations of this case, be summoned..." the court said while putting up the matter for a further status report on November 17, 2020.
The Special Court pulled up CBI after its counsel VK Pathak, sought some time to file a further status report in terms of the order dated September 26, 2020, on the ground that the further status report could not be filed due to the reason that lO was on training for some time and thereafter, he examined five witnesses and he still needs some more time to answer the queries raised by this Court on the last date of hearing. Time was granted in the interest of justice.
Earlier, the same special court, while hearing the matter in which two of its former CBI directors are facing graft allegations, raised questions, "Why the CBI did not bring investigations in this case to a logical end by using tried and tested methods of investigations like searches, custodial interrogation of potential suspects?"
The court also asked whether the alleged role of its another former director Alok Verma was investigated and whether he allegedly stalled or did not allow the investigations to reach its logical end during his tenure?
"Why CBI is dragging its feet in a case involving the roles of two of its former directors, which may lead to an inference that it is not very keen to pursue investigations qua them?" the court questioned.
The court also observed that "such open-ended investigations which keep on gathering dust for years together may seriously erode the credibility/ faith of public at large in premier investigating agency of India, which is deleterious to rule of law, more so, when one of the accused in the above RC is AP Singh, Ex-Director of CBI."
The CBI had registered an FIR in the matter on the basis of a complaint from Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Sana, facing probe in the 2017 case allegedly involving meat exporter Moin Qureshi. It also set up a probe against then CBI special director Rakesh Asthana and others for allegedly accepting a bribe in exchange for giving a clean chit to Sathish Babu Sana.
Later, Asthana had also accused former CBI director Alok Verma of trying to falsely implicate him in the case, following which the Centre sent both the officers on leave last year.
