Attorney General GE Vahanvati (File Photograph)
Attorney General GE Vahanvati will not represent the government at a crucial Supreme Court hearing today on whether the government tried to influence the CBI's investigation into the coal scam.
Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran will appear for the Centre instead.
The decision comes soon after an explosive letter written by Additional Solicitor General Harin Raval to Mr Vahanvati surfaced; it makes new and grave allegations against the top legal officer of the government.
Mr Raval has accused Mr Vahanvati of trying to shape not just this case, but other cases being handled by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) too.
In March, Mr Raval told the Supreme Court that the CBI's coal report, submitted in a sealed cover, had not been seen by anyone from the government. It's an assurance that could land him in a lot of trouble.
In his letter to Mr Vahanvati, Mr Raval says that he is being made a "scapegoat" and that he was "forced to take a stand" so as not to contradict his senior in court. "On account of your statement, I felt embarrassed and was forced to take a stand in the court consistent with your submission made as Attorney General for India that the contents of the status report were not known to you and that they were not shared with the government," the letter says.
(Read full letter)
Sources say Mr Raval is likely to resign soon and that his letter is meant to explain why the spectre of misconduct has lurked around him.
Last week, the CBI confessed in court that before its report was submitted to judges, it had been vetted by the Law Minister, Ashwani Kumar, and an official each in the Coal Ministry and the Prime Minister's Office.
The Opposition said this was incontrovertible proof of the government's misconduct, and has since been demanding the Law Minister and Prime Minister's resignation.
With his letter, Mr Raval has just turned up the dial several searing notches.
He says that it was the Attorney General who sent him an SMS asking him to attend a meeting on March 6 at the office of the Law Minister. Also present were CBI Director Ranjit Sinha and the CBI officer directly in charge of the coal investigation, OP Galhotra.
At this session, the Law Minister reportedly suggested several changes to the report, which was given to the Supreme Court on March 8. In his letter, Mr Raval says the Attorney General suggested changes too, writing "You would also kindly recall at the said meeting during the course of discussion the draft of only one of the status report of one of the preliminary enquiry was shown to the Honorable Law Minister and was perused by him as well as by you. Certain suggestions were made, including by you, to the CBI, some of which were accepted."
On March 12, the Supreme Court asked the CBI chief to state in writing that the documents had not been seen by anybody from the "political executive."
Last week, the CBI director shared the list of officials who had seen the report.