New Delhi: For the first time in a decade, the Centre has failed to nominate a full-time director for the post of CBI director, and has temporarily given the charge to head India’s premier probe agency to a Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana.
Asthana, currently an additional director in the agency, has previously probed the fodder scam in Bihar and the Godhra train burning incident. The 1984-batch officer has now taken over from Anil Sinha, who hung up his boots on Friday.
Earlier, the goings-on at the CBI headquarters had the rumour mills flying after the senior-most officer in the agency Special Director RK Dutta was transferred to the Home Ministry as Special Secretary for Internal Security just 48 hours before Sinha’s retirement. Government sources said the transfer was routine, but that didn’t put the speculation to rest as to why senior officer involved in the ongoing high-profile 2G scam investigations was abruptly moved out to make way for Asthana.
The Supreme Court had ruled last year that officers probing high profile cases not be shifted out.
The post of CBI director as the chief of the premier agency tasked with investigating sensitive corruption cases has a structured selection process. The officer is selected through a collegium comprising the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition or the largest party in Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India.
Incidentally, Chief Justice TS Thakur, who had criticised the government on the delay in judicial appointments, is retiring in January first week. Only a week ago, the apex court had slammed the government for not appointing a Lokpal and for using the excuse that there was confusion over the leader of opposition a post required also in the selection of the anti-corruption ombudsman.
There’s enough criticism already that the government is deliberately delaying the appointment of the next CBI Director because it feels it is best to keep the CBI chief’s baton in the temporary hands of Rakesh Asthana.
An IPS officer from the Gujarat cadre Rakesh Asthana, currently Additional Directory in the agency, is seeing his second stint in the CBI and has in the past been associated with other sensitive political investigations like the fodder scam probing Lalu Yadav.
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