Coming down on the Centre for failing to cooperate with the CBI in its probe into alleged irregularities in allocations of coal blocks for mining, the Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the government to file a comprehensive affidavit justifying the allotments of all 164 blocks which are under the scanner.
The apex court directed that the affidavit, to be filed within the next four weeks, must be supported by documents, records and minutes of the meetings that took place to decide the allottees. The court has also asked for records of all 36 steering committee meetings held on the allocations, saying there is a lot of deficiency and infirmity in the decisions taken by the screening committee.
Examining the CBI’s status report on its investigation, the court said, “It seems that the CBI is struggling (with the probe). Nothing (in terms of documents) has been given to them by the government,” a bench headed by Justice R.M. Lodha observed. On the issue of the CBI’s autonomy, the apex court said the law will have to be amended to ensure that the investigative agency is protected from extraneous influences. It said Parliament will have to amend the law while the apex court can also make ad hoc arrangements in this direction.
The court also asked why the CBI should need the government’s sanction to prosecute its officials and public servants, saying, “The supervision of the CBI is entrusted with the CVC. The Centre has no role. How can the CBI say government permission is needed for sanction? We need to discuss this.”
The court also questioned the CBI being denied the right to hire its own lawyers, which would have given it greater autonomy in politically-sensitive investigations.
In the present case, an additional solicitor general, who is the government’s law officer, is representing the CBI. Attorney-General G.E. Vahanvati also submitted that he is not in the favour of law officers being engaged by the CBI in view of the controversy of sharing of probe report which forced the then ASG, Haren Raval, who was representing the agency, to resign.
This led to ASG Siddharth Luthra withdrawing himself from representing the CBI in the apex court in the Coalgate case. Luthra is the third advocate to dissociate from the case.