Exiled CBI Chief Alok Verma Replies To Top Court On Vigilance Report

Exiled CBI chief Alok Verma filed his reply to the Supreme Court today on a probe report given by the anti-corruption watchdog Central Vigilance Commission. The top court earlier today told him to file his response "as quickly as possible" as it would not adjourn the hearing to another date.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi was informed by lawyer Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing Mr Verma, that the exiled CBI director had not yet filed his response with its registry.

"We are not shifting the date. You file as quickly as possible. We will have to read the response," the bench said.

Mr Verma has challenged the government's decision to send him on forced leave after he and CBI No. 2 Rakesh Asthana set off an unprecedented rift within the country's top investigating agency. Both accused each other of corruption; the CBI filed a case against Mr Asthana, who, in turn, wrote to the cabinet secretary and the vigilance chief listing allegations against his boss.

Last week, the top court did not give a clean chit in the vigilance report on corruption allegations against Mr Verma. The report is "complimentary on some charges, not-so-complimentary on some charges and very uncomplimentary on some charges," the court had said, and told the CBI chief to respond to the report in a sealed cover by today.

The Central Vigilance Commission's (CVC) report is a "mixed bag" and exhaustive, Chief Justice Gogoi had told the CBI chief's lawyer Fali Nariman last week, adding, "Further inquiry is required into some charges as per the CVC report."

Copies of the report were given to the government and the CVC, but the court refused Mr Asthana's request for a copy.

Mr Asthana had written to the government and the vigilance chief accusing Alok Verma of taking bribe from a businessman being investigated by the CBI. The special director had also accused the CBI director of not sharing with other agencies crucial intelligence inputs against two industrialists, and missing the name of a senior railway official from the report filed in the railway hotel scam involving Lalu Yadav's family.

Alok Verma had said it was Mr Asthana who took bribe from the businessman, who wanted to be spared any CBI summons. The CBI director also launched an investigation against his deputy.