News Analysis India

Tag: CBI

  • Navy leak case: Two commanders, four others named in CBI charge sheet

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The CBI on Tuesday filed its first charge sheet in the case pertaining to arrest of Navy officers handling sensitive submarine retro-fitting project for allegedly leaking confidential information in return of pecuniary gains, officials said.

    In its charge sheet filed before special CBI judge in Rouse Avenue court, the CBI booked six persons including two serving Navy commanders — one of them named Ajeet Kumar Pandey, a Commodore-ranked retired officer Randeep Singh, another Commander ranked retired officer SJ Singh working for a Korean Submarine company, a director of a private company and an alleged hawala operator.

    The CBI had arrested two retired officers and during searches, the agency recovered Rs 2 crore from the residence of one of them.

    The agency has booked the six individuals for charges of criminal conspiracy under Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruption Act, they said.

    It is alleged that the serving naval officers were allegedly leaking confidential information to the retired officers in return for pecuniary gains.

    After getting the information, the CBI had carried out a raid in September in which the two retired officers were arrested, the officials said.

    Sources said further probe is continuing and the role of some foreign nationals is under scanner.

    The Anti-Corruption unit of the agency, which handles sensitive and high profile corruption cases, was tasked with unearthing the leakage of information following which the operation was launched, they said.

    The unit has questioned several other officers and ex-servicemen who were in regular touch with the arrested officers and retired personnel, they said.

    The CBI is conducting a forensic analysis of digital products used by the officers to understand if the information had fallen into the hands of people with vested interests, they said.

    “Investigation related to alleged information leak of administrative and commercial nature being with some unauthorised personnel has come to light and is being investigated by appropriate government agency,” the navy said in a statement.

    The investigation by the agency with complete support of the navy is in progress, it said.

    An internal inquiry by the navy is also being progressed, it added.

  • CBI makes first arrest in bribery case involving Anil Deshmukh 

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The CBI on Sunday, October 31, 2021, made its first arrest in the bribery case involving former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh as it took an alleged middleman into custody, officials said.

    The agency arrested Santosh Jagtap from Thane Sunday morning, they said, adding he has been evading the probe even after the issuance of non-bailable warrants against him last month.

    The CBI had raided the premises of Jagtap, an alleged middleman, in August and also recovered Rs 9 lakh, they said.

  • Cruise drugs case: PIL in SC seeks CBI probe, direction to Centre to frame witness protection scheme

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: A PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a CBI probe into the Mumbai drugs-on-cruise case alleging that there has been interference in the ongoing probe of the Narcotics Control Bureau in the matter.

    The case involves Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan and others as accused and has triggered a series of controversies and put the bureau and its officials under the spotlight.

    The public interest litigation (PIL) has also sought a direction to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to frame the national witness protection scheme as recommended in various reports of the Law Commission.

    Aryan Khan, along with co-accused Arbaaz Merchant and fashion model Munmun Dhamecha, was granted bail on Thursday by the Bombay High Court, 25 days after he was arrested during a drug raid on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast.

    Lawyer M L Sharma, in the PIL filed in his personal capacity, has referred to the controversies raised by Maharashtra Minister Nawab Malik against Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) zonal director Sameer Wankhede and others in the case, and sought a CBI probe into the entire case, including the alleged interference into the ongoing investigation of the NCB.

    Besides seeking CBI probe, the plea also sought a direction for providing “protection to all the witnesses” to the instant case.

    The PIL also raised the legality of a complaint lodged with the Mumbai Police by a local lawyer using the alleged disclosure of a bribe saga by one of the witnesses, Prabhakar Sail, in the case.

    Raising a legal question for adjudication by the apex court, the PIL asked whether a minister may continue to hold his constitutional office even after “interfering” with the investigation and “maligning” the investigation officer.

    “No one is allowed to interfere in the criminal justice systems. The State and state minister are duty bound to protect the Constitution and not to interfere in the investigation and criminal process,” it said.

    “Witnesses are liable to be protected and not to be arrested and tortured to give favourable statements favouring the accused persons,” the PIL said.

    The NCB had busted an alleged drugs party on the Goa-bound Cordelia Cruise ship at mid-sea on October 2 and 20 people, including two Nigerian nationals, were arrested in the case.

    Aryan Khan, Merchant and Dhamecha were arrested by the NCB on October 3 and booked under relevant sections of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) for possession, consumption, sale/purchase of banned drugs, conspiracy and abetment.

  • Navy officer among 5 arrested by CBI for leaking confidential info about submarine project

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The CBI has arrested five persons including a commander-rank Navy officer for allegedly leaking confidential information related to an ongoing submarines project in return for illegal gratification, officials said Tuesday.

    The agency has initiated action in a secret operation last month in which two retired Navy personnel and as many private persons in addition to the Navy officer were taken into custody, they said.

    So far, the agency has conducted searches at 19 locations in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad among others from where important documents and digital evidence have been seized and are being examined, they said.

    It is alleged that the commander had discussed crucial details about the ongoing modernisation project of Kilo class submarines with the two retired officers for alleged illegal gratification, they said.

    The Anti Corruption Unit of the agency, which handles sensitive and high profile corruption cases, was tasked to unearth the leakage of information following which the operation was started, they said.

    The unit has questioned several other officers and ex-servicemen who were in regular touch with the arrested officer and retired personnel, they said.

    The CBI is conducting a forensic analysis of digital products used by the officer to understand if the information had fallen into the hands of people with vested interests, they said.

  • Navy officer among five arrested by CBI for leaking confidential info about submarine project

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: In a case of leak of sensitive information the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested serving and retired navy officers along with others. Indian Navy has also launched its internal inquiry.

    “Investigation related to alleged information leak of administrative and commercial nature being with some unauthorized personnel has come to light and is being investigated by appropriate government agency,” said the Indian Navy in a statement related to the arrest made by the CBI.

    As per the sources, “Officers were passing sensitive information related to Kilo Class Submarine to private persons.” The Navy said that the investigation by the agency with get its complete support and is in progress. “An internal inquiry by the Navy is also being progressed,” the statement said.

    As per the sources the case came into light a month back and the CBI conducted raids at 19 locations including those at Delhi, Noida, Hyderabad, and Delhi amongst the others. “Total 5 arrests have been made till now (one serving officer, two retired officers & two private persons) and all are in judicial custody as of now,” sources said.

    Currently, the officer was posted under Indian Navy’s Western Naval Command. To further probe the matter, the Indian Navy has set up a committee under a Vice Admiral to ascertain the fact about the espionage and how it could be stopped further.

    At present Indian Navy operates 12 conventional submarines and a nuclear powered submarine, which are strategically important underwater combat systems.

    Two days ago, an army jawan was arrested from Ferozpur Cantt in Punjab for allegedly leaking information. In a similar case in July, two other army jawans were arrested from Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir. In February 2018, a group captain of the Indian Air Force was also arrested for leaking classified information. 

  • States’ power to block CBI not absolute: Centre tells SC

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  The Centre on Friday told the Supreme Court that the right of state governments to withdraw consent for CBI probe is not absolute as per Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act. The West Bengal government had challenged the ongoing CBI probe into post-poll violence, saying it had not sought its consent. Since the Mamata government has already withdrawn its general consent to the CBI, the FIRs lodged by it cannot be proceeded with, it argued. 

    It was the Calcutta High Court that had tasked the CBI to probe the cases. In its affidavit, the Centre said: “The statutory power conferred upon the State Government under Section 6 of Delhi Special Police Establishment Act is always coupled with a responsibility to exercise that power on a case-to-case basis.” During a brief hearing, a bench of justices L Nageswara Rao and B R Gavai said the arguments in the case need to be heard in detail, and slated the hearing for November 16.

    The Centre said Bengal can’t issue blanket orders withdrawing all probe powers from the CBI. Its affidavit referred to several cases highlighted by the state, saying some of them also relate to offences of corruption against Central government employees. “It is always desirable and in the larger interest of justice that the Central agency conducts the investigation in such cases,” the Centre’s affidavit stated.

  • CBI searches premises of Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA Surendra Patwa in connection with bank fraud case

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The CBI conducted searches on Thursday at the premises of Surendra Patwa, a BJP MLA from Bhojpur near Bhopal, after booking him for alleged fraud of Rs 29.41 crore in the Bank of Baroda between 2014 and 2017, officials said.

    Patwa was earlier a minister in the Madhya Pradesh government.

    The case pertains to a loan of Rs 36 crore taken from the bank for Patwa’s car showroom in Indore — Patwa Automotive Private Limited — which was not repaid to the bank, the officials said.

    The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has booked Patwa, a director in the company, and another director, Monika Patwa, they added.

    Patwa is the nephew of former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Sunder Lal Patwa.

    He was also the tourism and culture minister of the state.

    “It was alleged that the borrower company had committed fraud during the period of 2014 to 2017 in conspiracy with its directors and unknown public servants and cheated the Bank of Baroda to the tune of Rs 29.41 crore (approx.),” CBI Spokesperson Joshi said in a statement.

    Searches were conducted at the premises of the accused in Bhopal and Indore, which led to the recovery of incriminating documents, he added.

    The CBI has alleged that the firm was extended the working capital loan and a term loan amounting to Rs 36 crore by the Bank of Baroda on September 13, 2014, after taking over the credit facilities extended by the IDBI Bank.

    “The said loan account became an NPA on May 2, 2017 and was subsequently reported as fraud to the RBI. The outstanding loan amount was Rs 29. 41 crore. It was also alleged that the forensic accounting had revealed siphoning of funds and diversion of funds by the said private company,” Joshi said.

    Patwa did not respond to a request seeking his comments on the development.

  • Dhanbad judge hit-and-run case: Jharkhand HC reprimands CBI, says it’s working like babus

    By Express News Service

    RANCHI: Expressing dissatisfaction over the charge sheet filed by the CBI in the Dhanbad hit-and-run case, the Jharkhand High Court observed that the investigation agency is working like ‘babus’ in the secretariat. While hearing the case, the division bench of Chief Justice Dr Ravi Ranjan and Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad also reprimanded the CBI for not taking it into confidence before filing the charge sheet despite the fact that the Jharkhand High Court is monitoring the case. The court also observed that there is no progress in the probe as the agency has failed to reach any conclusion despite three months of investigations.

    “If the case is being monitored by the Jharkhand High Court, how could the CBI file a charge sheet without taking it into confidence. What is the meaning of monitoring if the charge sheet is filed without taking the court into confidence?” said Jharkhand High Court Advocate Association Treasurer Dheeraj Kumar. The court observed that the CBI is working like babus, he added. According to Kumar, “The court further observed that it appears that the CBI is taking the case lightly, despite the fact that the court has been taking it seriously.”

    The court further observed that the CBI has destroyed the case completely as the motive of the killing has not been mentioned in the charge sheet. “As the motive is not known, the course of the case will be changed to another direction, diverting it towards section 304 instead of section 302 and the accused will get away easily in the name of an accident,” the court observed. It also alleged that the CBI has been keeping the court in the dark by filing stereotype progress reports.

    According to the court, despite three months of investigations, the CBI has not been able to reach any conclusion, which is really unfortunate. The case will be heard next on October 29.

    CCTV footage showing an auto-rickshaw intentionally hitting the judge from behind on a deserted road has raised doubts over his death while he was on his morning walk on July 28. The incident took place near Golf Ground less than 500 metres from his house at Judge Colony of Hirapur. Hours after the CCTV footage surfaced indicating that the incident was ‘intentional’ rather than an ‘accidental’, the Jharkhand High Court took suo moto cognizance into the matter calling the incident a direct attack on the judiciary. 

  • CBI files chargesheet in Dhanbad judge murder case

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The CBI on Wednesday filed a chargesheet against two accused in the alleged murder of Dhanbad Judge Uttam Anand, who was mowed down by an auto-rickshaw on July 28, officials said.

    The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed it before a special court against auto-rickshaw driver Lakhan Verma and his accomplice Rahul Verma under Indian Penal Code sections related to murder (302) and destruction of evidence (201) besides common intention (34), they said.

    The central agency has kept the probe open in the case, the officials said.

    Lakhan Verma and Rahul Verma are both in judicial custody, they said, adding that their narco-analysis has been conducted by the CBI.

    The 49-year-old judge was allegedly mowed down by a heavy auto-rickshaw while he was jogging on July 28 morning in Dhanbad.

    CCTV camera footage showed that the judge was jogging on one side of a fairly wide road at Randhir Verma Chowk in Dhanbad when the auto-rickshaw veered towards him, hit him from behind and fled the scene, killing him.

    The case was handed over to the CBI by the Jharkhand government.

    The CBI had dispatched a 20-member team under its ace investigator VK Shukla to probe the case.

    Shukla was recently awarded by the Union Home Ministry for being among the best investigators.

    The agency had taken over two more FIRs related to theft of mobile phones and the auto-rickshaw used in the crime from the Jharkhand Police in order to unravel the alleged conspiracy behind the killing of the judge, they said.

  • Supreme Court says can’t pass blanket order on appointment of CBI director

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Observing that it cannot pass a blanket order on appointment of CBI director, the Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to respond to the submission of an NGO that there should not be an ad-hoc arrangement and the existing chief should be allowed to continue till a successor is appointed after his tenure.

    A bench comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao and B R Gavai asked Attorney General K K Venugopal to address the court on the submission made by NGO Common Cause.

    The top court was hearing the NGO which had filed the plea concerning the appointment of the regular CBI director before the appointment of the present chief.

    At the outset, the bench said the matter has become infructuous as the appointment has already been made.

    Attorney General K K Venugopal told the bench that an appointment to the post of CBI director was made on May 25, 2021, by the committee of which the Chief Justice of India is also part.

    Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, submitted that this is a regular phenomenon that is happening again and again despite the orders of the top court.

    Bhushan said that his first prayer in the plea was an appointment to the post of CBI director which has been done.

    He said the second prayer seeks a direction to the Centre to initiate and complete the process of selection of the CBI director well in advance, at least one to two months before the date on which the vacancy to the post is about to occur.

    He said that despite the categorical order of the apex court in the Prakash Singh case (relating to DGPs of states), “we have to move again and again over the same issue.”

    “The Centre knew that the CBI director was retiring in February. There was no COVID at that time and they could have easily initiated the process of selecting the new director but they didn’t do that. When we filed this plea, they took a plea that COVID is going on. This is happening repeatedly and they are flouting orders of this court. This has to stop,” Bhushan said.

    The apex asked Bhushan to file another writ petition if this happens again.

    “We can’t pass some blanket orders. File contempt petition. Why should we reiterate what we said in the Prakash Singh case? If there is another cause of action you file a plea then. How can we pass an order when there is no lis before us. Now we have to anticipate and pass directions,” the bench said.

    Venugopal told the court that the meeting of the committee convened to appoint the director of CBI could not be convened due to the unavailability of the Leader of Opposition who sent a letter saying he would not be available till May 2.

    Keeping in view the convenience of members of the committee the meeting was held later and the appointment made, the AG said.

    The top court told AG that Bhushan is submitting that appointment of the CBI director on an adhoc basis or additional charge is not permissible because of Prakash Singh’s judgement.

    “He (Bhushan)says the appointment of CBI director should be initiated two months in advance so that a situation of ad hoc appointment does not arise, ” the bench said while asking the AG to respond.

    The AG said the suggestion seems to be reasonable but when an extraordinary situation arises there may be some delay.

    Responding to Bhushan’s submissions, Venugopal said that the delay in regular appointment happened as the High Powered Committee, to appoint CBI director, could not meet due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The AG said the committee consists of the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India(or his nominee judge), and the Leader of Opposition.

    At times, there might be difficulties in the meeting of the committee, and in such exceptional circumstances, ad-hoc appointments are made, the AG said, adding that ad-hoc appointments should be allowed in such exceptional circumstances.

    Bhushan said that in exceptional circumstances, the existing director has to continue because the existing director is appointed by the HPC, but the acting director is appointed by the government.

    “Would you accept the Bhushan’s submission that the existing director should continue in such exceptional circumstances?”, the bench asked Venugopal.

    The AG then sought time to respond to this submission and the court posted the matter for hearing on October 25.

    The NGO had contended that the appointment of a regular CBI director as per the statutory law is necessary for upholding the rule of law and for enforcement of the rights of citizens under articles of the Constitution dealing with equality before law and protection of life and personal liberty.

    Referring to an earlier judgement of the apex court, the plea had said the top court had directed that Director Generals of Police (DGP) in the states should have a minimum tenure of at least two years irrespective of his date of superannuation.

    DGPs are the heads of the police force in states and CBI is the premier central investigating agency.

    Both the DGPs as well as the CBI director have a minimum tenure of two years, as per the existing law of the land, it had said.