Will examine accounts of visitors' of ex-CBI chief
BY MPOST BUREAU15 Jan 2018 11:49 PM IST
MPOST BUREAU15 Jan 2018 11:49 PM IST
New Delhi: The CBI's special investigation team (SIT) on Monday told the Supreme Court that it would examine bank account details of persons who had visited the official residence of its former chief Ranjit Sinha, who, it claimed, had prima facie tried to scuttle the probe in coal scam cases.
The SIT, which filed a report giving status of its investigation into the matter, told a bench headed by Justice Madan B Lokur that "substantial progress" has been made in the investigation and its scope has been widened.
The apex court, which is monitoring the probe by the CBI and the ED into the coal scam cases, expressed its displeasure over the tardy pace of probe.
"You have given us 11 reports of Enforcement Directorate (ED) and 18 reports of CBI. We must say, the progress in the investigation has been slow. Even now, when we see the 18th report of CBI, it says one case is pending," the bench, which also comprised Justices Kurian Joseph and A K Sikri, said.
Senior advocate R S Cheema, who has been appointed a special public prosecutor (SPP) by the top court for coal scam cases, placed the SIT's status report on record and said the team was trying to trace the number of vehicles which used to come to Sinha's official residence.
The top court had in January last year constituted the SIT headed by the CBI director to look into the prima facie allegations against Ranjit Sinha of trying to influence the probe in coal scam cases.
During the hearing, Cheema told the bench that visitors at the former CBI chief's house were more than what was there in the visitors' diary maintained at his official residence and its probe was going on.
"Vehicle number of visitors have to be traced. The probe is going on. Bank account details of visitors have to be looked into," he told the bench, adding, "exercise has been done substantially. They (SIT) have asked for six months (to complete the probe)."
While maintaining that "substantial progress" has been made into the probe, he urged the court to list the matter after 3-4 months, but the bench posted it for hearing in the second week of March.
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