Supreme Court of India(SCI)directs CBI Director Ranjit Sinha to stay away from the probe into the 2G Scam Thursday Nov 20,2014

 

Twelve days before his retirement, this is as bad as it gets for the head of the country’s premier anti-corruption investigation agency. 

CBI Director Ranjit Sinha was on Thursday Nov 20,2014directed by the Supreme Court to stay away from the probe into the 2G scam, one of the biggest scandals to hit the country.

Never before has a court asked the chief of any police body in India to stay away from a case. 

Ranjit Sinha was removed from the probe on the grounds that allegations of him protecting some accused in the case appear to be “prima facie credible”. 

Sinha was asked not to “interfere” in the case and let the senior-most officer after him supervise the probe. 

After proceedings that lasted nearly four hours, the SC Bench, headed by Chief Justice H.L. Dattu, refused to pass an elaborate order on the issue, saying it would tarnish the image and reputation of the agency. 

The SC Bench, also comprising Justices M.B. Lokur and A.K. Sikri, observed: “Prima facie the allegations made in the application (by NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation) are credible and required to be accepted.” 

 

The question that is now being asked after this unprecedented development is whether Sinha should continue as the CBI chief. 

Ranjit Sinha also came under attack from Anand Grover, the special public prosecutor appointed by the apex court for the 2G scam. 

Anand Grover was critical of Sinha’s role and questioned some of his decisions. Even CBI counsel K.K. Venugopal raised questions about Sinha naming a senior IPS officer as a “mole” in his team. 

“If he has any shame he ought to have resigned after the indictment of the Supreme Court and the special public prosecutor. If he does not resign it is incumbent upon the government to sack him and  initiate proceedings against him,” said Prashant Bhushan, who approached the Supreme Court seeking action against Sinha. 

Anand Grover raised serious questions on Sinha’s conduct and contended that the entire case against some of the accused in the 2G case would have been “demolished” if Sinha’s instructions were followed during the trial.