Meet to pick CBI chief pushed due to Congress leader: Official
THE CBI HAS BEEN WITHOUT A REGULAR DIRECTOR AFTER RISHI KUMAR SHUKLA DEMITTED OFFICE ON FEBRUARY 2
A top panel mandated to select a regular director for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will not be able to meet before May 2 due to the unavailability of Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, a senior government official has told the Centre’s top law officer KK Venugopal in a letter seen by HT.
The apex court, which is hearing a petition on the delay in appointment of a full-time CBI director, nudged the government earlier this month to hold the meeting before May 2. The CBI has been without a regular director after Rishi Kumar Shukla demitted office on February 2 after completing his twoyear term. Currently, the premier investigating agency is headed by interim director Pravin Sinha.
Under the law, the CBI director has to be appointed on the recommendation of a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, the leader of the single largest opposition party in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India or their nominee.
Lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who appeared for the petitioner NGO ‘Common Cause’, had claimed during this hearing that the delay in holding the meeting was designed to “bypass” the present Chief Justice of India SA Bobde who is retiring on April 23. The Centre had then rejected this charge and tasked Deepak Khandekar, secretary of the department of personnel and training (DoPT), to explore the possibility of holding a meeting before May 2.
In a letter to Attorney General Venugopal on Sunday, Deepak Khandekar said this didn’t work out. “Undersigned Deepak Khandekar has contacted Shri Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the Leader of the single largest Opposition party in the House of People (Indian National Congress) and Shri Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury informed that he will not be available till 2nd May 2021. Therefore, a meeting of the above said committee may be feasible to be convened only after 2nd May 2021, keeping in view the convenience of all the members of the aforesaid committee to be available to attend in person,” Khandekar’s April 18 letter said.
Rejecting the contention, Chowdhury said: “If anyone says I am busy in election, they should know that PM Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah are busier than me in campaigning. I was communicated over the phone and the concerned official told me that since both the PM and I are busy in election, can we schedule the meeting after May 2. I told them I have no problem. If they are now saying the meeting is held up because of me, they are telling a lie.”
The letter did not explain why Chowdhury was unavailable. Chowdhury is the president of the West Bengal Congress and is involved in campaigning for the assembly elections, the results of which will be declared on May 2.