CVC submits Alok Verma probe report

NEWDELHI: CJI GOGOI TOLD THE GOVERNMENT THAT AN SC REGISTRAR HAD SAT TILL 11.30 AM ON SUNDAY JUST TO RECEIVE THE REPORT

The Supreme court on Monday deferred hearing on CBI director Alok Verma’s petition challenging the government move to divest him of his powers to Friday after the Central Vigilance Commission delayed handing over its report on the bribery probe against Verma to the court.

The apex court had in its October 31 order directed the CVC to probe the charges against Verma under the supervision of retired Supreme Court judge AK Patnaik, and to submit its report in two weeks’ time. The deadline ended on Sunday.

But it was only during Monday’s hearing that solicitor general of India Tushar Mehta passed on the report in a sealed cover to the bench led by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi.

The bench expressed dissatisfaction over the delay, and CJI Gogoi told the government, “a Supreme Court registrar sat till 11.30 am on a holiday just to receive the report. Despite that the report was not filed. If the report would have been filed we would have had the opportunity to go through it.”

Mehta sought to explain the delay saying “officers of CVC had gone to Supreme court to file the report but they were late by an hour because they were getting spiral binding of the report.”

A report by the acting CBI director Nageshwar Rao, listing decisions taken by him during the period, too was given to the court in compliance of its earlier directions. Rao also filed details of the decisions in a sealed envelope.

Senior advocate Dushyant Dave, who was appearing for NGO Common Cause, objected to the acting CBI director Rao having taken decisions despite the SC order against it.