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IPS Officer Rakesh Asthana (Source: Rakesh Asthana / Facebook)
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed the petition challenging the appointment of Gujarat cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana as a special director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The apex court had on November 24 reserved its order on the plea that was filed by senior laywer Prashant Bhushan on behalf of NGO Common Cause. ALSO READ | SC reserves order on plea challenging appointment of IPS officer Asthana as CBI special director
The central government had defended Asthana’s appointment, saying the 56-year-old has had an outstanding career wherein he supervised over 40 high profile cases like coal scam, Kingfisher Airlines, AugustaWestland scam, blackmoney and money laundering cases. READ MORE
Bhushan had claimed Asthana’s appointment to be “illegal” as his name had surfaced in a diary recovered during a raid conducted by the Income Tax department at the offices and other premises of company Sterling Biotech Ltd. Alleging that Asthana had close relations with the firm that was under the lens, he contended “we are not saying if the officer did something wrong, but this is a question of institutional integrity which was underlined by the Supreme Court in the case of Chief Vigilance Commissioner P J Thomas”.
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The petition had also cited The Indian Express’s report on fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya, where Asthana’s appointment was highlighted by London University professor Lawrence Saez to state that the CBI lacks integrity. Saez has given an expert opinion before the London court after being engaged by Mallya’s defence.
With inputs from PTI
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