Appointment of Rao as interim CBI director challenged in SC Kashmir still a challenge due to Pak’s destabilising activities, says Rajnath
Appointment of MN Rao as interim CBI chief challenged
NEW DELHI: A plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Monday seeking a direction to quash the January 10 order of the government appointing IPS officer M Nageswara Rao as an interim director of the CBI.
CBI’S Additional Director Rao was given the charge of CBI interim chief on January till the appointment of a new director after a high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed Alok Kumar Verma as the chief of the probe agency on charges of corruption and dereliction of duty.
The petition, filed by NGO Common Cause and RTI activist Anjali Bhardwaj, has sought laying down of specific mechanisms to ensure transparency in the process of appointment of CBI director.
It alleged that Rao’s appointment was not made by recommendations of the high-powered selection committee, comprising the prime minister, the leader of the single largest opposition party and the chief justice of India or a judge of the apex court nominated by him.
NEW DELHI: A plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Monday seeking a direction to quash the January 10 order of the government appointing IPS officer M Nageswara Rao as an interim director of the CBI.
CBI'S Additional Director Rao was given the charge of CBI interim chief on January till the appointment of a new director after a high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed Alok Kumar Verma as the chief of the probe agency on charges of corruption and dereliction of duty.
The petition, filed by NGO Common Cause and RTI activist Anjali Bhardwaj, has sought laying down of specific mechanisms to ensure transparency in the process of appointment of CBI director.
It alleged that Rao's appointment was not made on the basis of recommendations of the high-powered selection committee, comprising the prime minister, the leader of the single largest opposition party and the chief justice of India or a judge of the apex court nominated by him.
“In fact, it appears that the committee was completely bypassed and had no role in the appointment of Nageswara Rao, thereby rendering the appointment illegal as it is in violation of the procedure for appointment of Director, CBI laid down in the DSPE (Delhi Special Police Establishment) Act,” the plea, filed through advocate Prashant Bhushan, said.
It stated that the order of October 23 last year appointing Rao as the interim CBI director was quashed by the top court on January 8 but the government has “acted in a completely mala fide, arbitrary and illegal manner” to appoint him again in “complete contravention” of the DSPE Act.
The plea also sought a direction to the Centre to appoint a regular CBI director forthwith by following the procedure laid down in accordance with the provision of DSPE Act, as amended by the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013.
Besides this, the petition has sought a direction to the government to ensure that “all records of deliberations and rational criteria related to short-listing and selection of the director, CBI, be properly recorded and made available to citizens in consonance with the provisions of the RTI Act”.
It said the government should ensure transparency in short-listing, election and appointment process of CBI director by publicly disclosing, including through the website, the procedure and rational criteria for short-listing candidates, if any short-listing is done.
The plea sought a direction to the Centre that the process of selecting CBI director, including composition, mandate and minutes of the meetings of the search committee, should be disclosed publicly along with names of short-listed candidates so that people can inform the panel of any significant adverse information they may have about any such candidate.
It said that the minutes of the meetings of the selection committee should be publicly disclosed and recording of facts to indicate how the selected candidates are best suited for the post, disclosure of this information according to the provisions of the RTI Act after the appointment has been made should be there.
“In so far as the appointment of the Director, CBI is concerned, the Government of India has failed to adopt proper procedures to ensure transparency in the short-listing, selection and appointment,” the plea said. LAKHIMPUR KHERI/BAHRAICH (UP): Kashmir is still a challenge due to destabilising activities by Pakistan, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said here on Monday.
He was talking to mediapersons after inaugurating the administrative building, residential block and officers' mess at the SSB sector headquarters in Lakhimpur.
“Kashmir is still a challenge due to destabilising activities by neighbouring Pakistan. However, the Army, the CRPF, the J&K police and intelligence bureau men are acting in better coordination,” he said.
Speaking about Naxal incidents, the home minister said they had dropped by 50 per cent during the last four years.
Extremist violence in northeastern areas saw a decline of 80 per cent, Singh said.
Lauding improvements made on the internal security front, he said, “No major terrorist incident had taken place in India during the last fourand-a-half years (of the Narendra Modi government).”
Singh said the country's economy today was counted as the world's fastest growing.
“By 2030, the Indian economy would rank among top three economies of the world,” he said. “The Modi government has launched the world's largest universal health care scheme Ayushmaan Bharat which has benefitted 7.5 lakh people so far,” Singh said.
The Union minister also visited Bahraich, where he laid the foundation stone of the state's first Integrated Check Post (ICP) at the Indo-nepal border in Rupaideha area. The ICP was constructed at a cost of Rs 200 crore.
Singh said the security forces were tackling well the terrorists pushed into India by Pakistan.