CVC awaits govt stand in SC on appointment?
As the speculation about the resignation of CVC P.J. Thomas has taken the dimension of a weather bulletin adding to the embarrassment of the government on a daily basis, the “watchdog” against corruption might be waiting for Monday’s crucial hearing of the Supreme Court to asses what final stand the Centre takes on his appointment as he himself is an accused in Kerala’s decades-old palmolein import scam case.
Monday’s hearing before a bench of Chief Justice of India S.H. Kapadia on Mr Thomas’ choice as CVC assumes importance in the backdrop of his “recusal” from the supervision of the CBI investigation in the 2G spectrum case being monitored by another bench, which also raised question about his “ability” to supervise the probe by the agency not only because his name figured in the palmolein case but there were allegations against him that he as telecom secretary tried to “suppress” the 2G scam.
The CJI’s bench on November 22 had asked Attorney General G.E. Vahanvati to get celar “instructions” from the government as how a person chargesheeted in a corruption case could function as CVC.
The top court had reminded the government that Thomas facing charges in a pending corruption case might face a situation when a person being probed by him might raise queries about his own integrity.
“He will not be able to function in any matter as he will face this problem repeatedly,” the top court had said.
Since the top court had summoned the files related to his controversial appoint, the CJI had said that by the time government makes its stand clear, the three judges in his bench would also have gone through the files produced by the A-G in a “sealed cover”.
The issue of Mr Thomas’ appointment has come before the government at a worst time when it is facing embarrassment both in Parliament and the Supreme Court on the issue of 2G spectrum issue.
As Mr Thomas himself had been the telecom secretary from October 7, 2009 onward till appointment CVC in September this year, his name is also being dragged in the spectrum scam also.
When his appointment was announced, the government perhaps had no inkling that the 2G issue, being debated in public and even in Parliament for the past two years, would take such a dimension and his name would also “surface” in the controversy.
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