TELL CBI NOT TO FILE FRESH PLEA IN BOFORS CASE: AG

NEWDELHI:: Attorney general KK Venugopal has advised the government to dissuade the CBI from filing a fresh appeal in the Bofors gun case, saying the plea was likely to be “dismissed by the court” on the grounds of long delay.

In his letter, seen by Hindustan Times, to the department of personnel and training, the country’s highest law officer said there were not enough reasons to request the Supreme Court to overlook the delay.

“Now, more than 12 years have elapsed. Any SLP (special leave petition) filed before the Supreme Court at this stage, in my view, is likely to be dismissed by the court on account of the long delay itself,” Venugopal wrote.

Sources in AG’S office confirmed that Venugopal had written to the government but refused to share details. The CBI declined to comment immediately.

The investigating agency had in October 2017 sought government’s permission to challenge in the SC 2005 Delhi high court order quashing all charges in the Bofors gun pay-off case.

“We asked the government to reconsider its earlier decision of not allowing the agency to challenge the HC order in the top court,” a CBI official said at that time. The decision was taken when the Congress-led UPA was in power. “It is worth noting that the present government has been in position for more than three years now. In the circumstances, the long delay in approaching the court will be difficult to satisfactorily explain to the court,” Venugopal wrote.