New Delhi: A Delhi court Wednesday expressed displeasure over CBI’s investigation into a bribery case involving its former Special Director Rakesh Asthana and asked why the accused with bigger roles in the case were roaming free while the probe agency has arrested its own DSP.
Asthana and DSP Devender Kumar, who was arrested in 2018 and later got bail, were named in column 12 of the charge sheet in the case since there was not enough evidence to make them accused.
The CBI registered the case against Asthana on the basis of a complaint from Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Sana, facing probe in a 2017 case involving meat exporter Moin Qureshi.
“Why are certain accused who seem to have a bigger role in the case were roaming free while the CBI has arrested its own DSP,” asked Special CBI Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal. The court put up the matter for further consideration February 19.
The agency had Tuesday filed a charge sheet against Dubai-based businessman and alleged middleman Manoj Prasad in connection with the case. It had also given a clean chit to Asthana in the charge sheet.
The agency has also absolved RAW chief SK Goel, who was under the scanner in the case. CBI DSP Devender Kumar, who was arrested in 2018 and later got bail, also got a clean chit by the probe agency. Prasad was arrested October 17, 2018 and got bail December 18 the same year.
According to sources, the charge sheet states that investigation in the matter is still under way and the agency may file a supplementary report.
The CBI’s failure to file a charge sheet within the mandatory 60 day period had in December 2018 led a Delhi court to grant statutory bail to Prasad.
The trial court had October 31 last year granted bail to Kumar, arrested October 23, after the agency chose not the oppose his application.
The CBI had registered the case against Asthana on the basis of a complaint from Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Sana, facing probe in the 2017 case allegedly involving meat exporter Moin Qureshi.
Sana alleged that the officer had helped him get a clean chit. The agency had arrested Prasad in the case when he returned from Dubai. It was alleged by Sana that Prasad and his brother Somesh had taken Rs 2 crore to arrange a clean chit to him.
PTI