New Delhi:
The appointment of an officer in the Central Bureau of Investigation has led to an unseemly confrontation between the government's anti-corruption watchdog and the Prime Minister's Office.
Sources say the Central Vigilance Commission has objected to the government rejecting its candidate and overruling it to appoint Tamil Nadu cadre officer Archana Ramasundaram as additional director in the CBI.
The commission had recommended another officer, RK Pachnanda, who, sources say, is facing four inquiries in corruption cases. Minister of State with the Prime Minister's office, V Narayanasamy, reportedly pointed this out, and questioned why the vigilance panel had refused to send more than one name for the post. Sources say that Mr Narayansamy's department had been made aware of CBI's objections to Mr Pachnanda.
The vigilance commission reportedly picked Mr Pachnanda from three names forwarded by the Department of Personnel for the CBI post, but the appointment panel headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh objected to it. When the commission refused to send a panel, as is the protocol, and suggested the same officer again, the government reportedly selected Ms Ramasundaram.
The 1980-batch officer, who has been Deputy Inspector General and Joint Director in the CBI, has handled many financial investigations including a multi-crore fake stamp paper scam of 2003.
The BJP has accused the government of undermining the Central Vigilance Commission. "I am questioning the procedure of appointing the officer. This is the same way PJ Thomas was appointed as the Central Vigilance Commissioner by it earlier," said the party's spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman.
In 2011, the opposition slammed the government for appointing PJ Thomas as the Central Vigilance Commissioner despite a corruption case against him. The appointment was finally scrapped by the Supreme Court.