‘Why do you use machinery for political battles?’ SC pulls up CBI

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected an application by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) seeking permission to initiate a preliminary inquiry into alleged irregularities concerning appointments and promotions within the Jharkhand Assembly Secretariat. A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran was hearing the interim application when the CJI made a pointed observation regarding the agency’s role in political disputes.

“Why do you use the machinery for your political battles? We have told you so many times,” the CJI remarked while dismissing the probe agency’s request.

The development follows the top court’s decision on November 14, 2024, when it stayed a Jharkhand High Court verdict dated September 23, 2024, which had originally directed the CBI to conduct the inquiry.

The courtroom saw a tense exchange regarding the agency’s sudden appearance in related matters. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha Secretariat, stated, “It is shocking that when matters come up, the CBI appears in that court beforehand.” Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, appearing for the CBI, countered this claim with a simple, “Not in this case.” Sibal then contended that this pattern had been observed “in many cases, in West Bengal, my lords have seen it,” although the law officer maintained that the CBI’s involvement is only triggered by the presence of an offence.

The plea filed by the Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha Secretariat and others, through advocate Tulika Mukherjee, argued that the High Court had made an error by directing a CBI investigation in the absence of a discernible criminal or cognisable offence. The Secretariat maintained that the matter involved complicated questions of service jurisprudence and law, not criminality, asserting there was “no proof of exchange of money, there is no proof of giving or taking of money, there is no proof of fraud and no criminality can be made out.”

Details of the recruitment process cited in the plea trace back to the Jharkhand Legislative Assembly Secretariat (Recruitment and Conditions of Service Rule, 2003) which came into existence on March 10, 2003. Appointments and promotions were subsequently carried out between 2003 and 2007 following proper steps, including advertising, issuing admit cards, and conducting examinations.

The controversy originated from an unverified voice recording about alleged irregularities, which was converted into a compact disk and submitted to the Speaker in 2007. This led to the formation of a five-member committee in October 2007, whose recommendation in August 2008 was opposed by two members of the panel.

Further action was taken in July 2014 when the Cabinet Secretariat and Vigilance Department appointed a former High Court judge to formally inquire into the matter. This commission submitted a report with recommendations on 30 points of reference on July 12, 2018. Following a letter from the then Governor on September 10, 2018, the Speaker approved the compulsory retirement of two officers via notifications issued on August 26, 2019. The Secretariat’s plea stated that it was actively working on implementing the report and even requested another commission in August 2022 for the interpretation of complicated legal and factual questions within the recommendations.

The Supreme Court’s decision to dismiss the CBI’s application leaves the stay on the High Court’s probe directive intact. No effective hearing has taken place in the case since the stay was granted on November 14, 2024.