CBI vs CBI LIVE: Former CBI director Alok Verma resigned from the services on Friday, a day after he was removed from the investigative agency’s top post by the high-powered committee and transferred to head the fire services. In his resignation letter, Verma said he was not given a chance by the PM-led selection panel to explain the charges levelled against him by the Central Vigilance Committee before it removed him as CBI director on Thursday. Calling the decision to shunt him from the top post as “scuttling of natural justice”, he said that the entire process was turned upside down.
“Also, it may be noted that the undersigned already superannuated as on July 31, 2017 and was only serving Government as Director, CBI till January 31, 2019, as the same was fixed tenure role. The undersigned is no longer Director, CBI and has already crossed the superannuation age for DG Fire Service, Civil Defence and Home Guards. Accordingly, the undersigned may be deemed as superannuated with effect from today,” Verma said in his letter to Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training Friday.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court has refused to quash an FIR against CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana and few others, including deputy superintendent of police Devender Kumar. On the other hand, Alok Verma, who was removed by a high-powered committee, has turned down his new role as Chief of Fire Services and has written to the Department of Personnel and Training informing about his decision.
Kumar, who was earlier the investigation officer in a case involving meat exporter Moin Qureshi, has been arrested on the allegations of forgery in recording the statement of Sathish Sana, who had alleged to have paid bribes to get relief in the case, they said.
It is alleged that a statement of Sana was purportedly recorded on September 26, 2018 by the investigating team headed by Asthana, but it emerged in the CBI probe that on that given day the businessman was in Hyderabad, they claimed.
In his statement, Sana had purportedly said that he had in June this year discussed his case with Telugu Desam Party’s Rajya Sabha member C M Ramesh who, after speaking to the CBI Director, had assured him that he would not be summoned again. “From June onwards, I was not called by the CBI. I was under the impression that investigation against me is complete,” he is believed to have said.
The CBI has now alleged that Kumar had fabricated this statement as an “afterthought…to corroborate the baseless allegations made by Asthana against CBI Director Alok Verma to the CVC (Central Vigilance Commissioner)”, they claimed. They said the agency was also looking into the alleged role of other members of the special investigation team headed by Asthana.
Asthana, who was booked by the agency on bribery charges in an unprecedented action, had complained against CBI Director Verma on August 24, 2018 that he had taken bribe of Rs 2 crore from Sana to give him relief in the matter.
The verdict on Asthana comes after the unceremonious exit of Verma, who was removed by a high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on charges of corruption and dereliction of duty.
Verma, in a statement late on Thursday night, said the CBI being a prime investigating agency dealing in corruption in high public places is an institution whose independence should be preserved and protected. “It must function without external influences. I have tried to uphold the integrity of the institution while attempts were being made to destroy it. The same can be seen from the orders of the central government and the CVC dated October 23, 2018, which were without jurisdiction and were set aside,” he said.
Verma termed it “sad” that he was transferred to another post pursuant to the orders of the committee on the basis of “false, unsubstantiated and frivolous allegations made by only one person, who was inimical to him”.
Verma’s ouster has also started a political slugfest, with the Opposition accusing the Centre of removing him to avoid a probe into the Rafale deal.
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