Choosing pliable directors led to mishaps, says Jaitley

His comments come at a time when the Supreme Court has ordered CBI director Ranjit Sinha not to interfere in the 2G scam probe.

Jaitley said that he, along with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, had also raised concerns over Sinha’s appointment in 2012.

Sinha was appointed CBI chief by the former UPA government in November 2012. At the time, Jaitley and Swaraj were the leaders of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha respectively.

The two were also part of the select committee on the Lokpal Bill, which had favoured a collegium system to select the CBI chief.

“At 11 am, that report was to be tabled and this appointment was made the previous evening at 9 pm. The next day Sushma Swaraj and I wrote to the Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) that on what criteria have you done this…,” he recalled.

Jaitley also said that there is a need to review the Prevention of Corruption Act. “Several provisions and definitions in the accountability law for public servants have become obsolete. These require a re-look,” he said while responding to a query on privatisation.

While underlining his support to privatisation in some sectors, Jaitley said, “How do you go for privatisation when 12 years later the CBI can wake up and register a case?”

He further said that his view is based on his experience as the disinvestment minister as well as the defence minister. During his term as defence minister, he said that he found officials tending to pass on files to successors.

“We can’t have a system which operates in this manner,” he said, adding that this is another area that should be looked at as part of the reform process.