In Mithilanchal area of North Bihar, if one is under the influence of ghosts, some native experts use mustard seeds while reciting ‘mantras’ to chase away the disturbing invisible souls. In this context there is a sying that if the mustard seeds themselves are having ghostly elements, then how the suffering man will be saved. The same story has been repeated by the Gauhati High Court in case of the CBI. Whenever there is a heinous crime, criminal or otherwise involving celebrities, there is a demand for free and fair enquiry by the CBI. On Nov 8,2013 the Gauhati High Court gave a decision, maintaining that this premier investgating outfit is illegal. It has surprised the whole country.
The High Court did not do anything new or unbelievable. During the Janata Party rule, there was countrywide strike by the policemen of all nomenclatures for different demands. Even the Intelligence Bureau had to face this music as its direct recruits refused to be rated as police officers as they had not been appointed under any police law. Several of them surrendered their Indian Police Medal and President’s Police Medal. It is under this plea that even today, the IB has no power of arrest, raids and interrogations despite the outfit being more than one hundred years old. Exactly under the same circumstances, the CBI was formed for a specific issue in 1963 without any Cabinet decision and signature of the President of India. So the High Court rightly observed that it had no power of search, investigation and interrogation and that it was an illegal body. The SC itself, only a few months back had felt dismayed over the blatant malleable attitude of the CBI in the Coal Scam and rated it as a parrot of the Govt. Manish Tiwari, present Information and Broadcasting Minister had himself expressed doubts over the legality of this investigational agency.
Within hours of this decision,the accused in cases launched by CBI including A. Raja and Sajjan Kumar moved the court to trash the charges against them. The implication of the decision was so alarming that the Centre immediately decided to move the Supreme Court to stay the Gauhati decision. The Attorney General Vahanvati appealed to the SC and the case was heard by the Chief Justice at his residence on Nov 9 afternoon. In view of the dangerous and wide-ranging implications of the subject, the SC took only 15 minutes to gauge the fact in issue and stay the Gauhati HC decision. The next hearing is scheduled for Dec 6,2013. The CBI as well as the Govt has taken a sigh of relief. Yet the Govt and the SC will have to thrash out a solution imparting legality to the prestigious CBI. Everybody laughs today that half- a- century old famous national police agency, employing 6,000 personnel continues to run on an executive order.
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