The judge said that permission for prior sanction to prosecute Asthana was not required considering the facts of the case.
In the absence of any clear definition of 'major policy' decisions, the grey area exists as to what extent Verma's powers will be limited.
Rapid rise in disposal of corruption cases against govt employees has helped
'The selection process of the CBI chief has not been appropriate.' 'Three successive CBI directors have been found in corrupt moral practices.' 'A thorough investigation needs to be done before appointing anyone to such a post.'
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to go into a plea seeking probe by an special investigation team into alleged recovery of documents by the IT department in connection with raids on two business houses in New Delhi.
Former top bureaucrats have come out in support of ex-coal secretary P C Parakh, who has been named by the Central Bureau of Investigation in the coal blocks allocation scam, warning that harassment of honest officers will erode the government's credibility and stop senior officers from taking decisions.
Delhi's Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena on Monday sent a legal notice to Aam Aadmi Party leaders, accusing them of levelling 'false and derogatory' allegations against him, days after they claimed he was involved in a Rs 1,400-crore 'scam' during his tenure as the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) chairman.
MHA said the four men were on 'routine, covert' duties in the high security area.
He has also sought stay of the Centre's order asking him to proceed on leave and giving the interim charge of his post to Joint Director M Nageswara Rao, a 1986 batch Odisha-cadre IPS officer.
The CBI chief's advocate said there was no basis for the Central Vigilance Commission to pass such an order recommending to send him on leave.
India's premier investigating agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation, is witnessing an unprecedented crisis since the last few weeks. At the heart of the crisis is the struggle between its two top bosses -- Alok Verma and Rakesh Asthana. As the case continues to play out in the public with allegations being countered with more allegations, here's all you need to know about the feud and its various twists and turns.
In his petition, Kharge, who is the leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha, said only the three-member committee of leader of opposition, prime minister and the Chief Justice of India can take a decision on the appointment or removal of the CBI director as per the act.
The Congress' protests in the national capital were replicated in other parts of the country.
The petition has sought laying down of specific mechanisms to ensure transparency in the process of appointment of CBI director.
A controversy has broken out over the appointment of an additional director in the Central Bureau of Investigation after the government and the central vigilance commission locked horns over considering an officer whose track record was under question.
Attorney General K K Venugopal told a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi that the fight between the two officers impacted the image of the CBI.
Addressing a press conference in the nation's capital, he claimed that Verma's removal was an "insult" to the Constitution, the chief justice of India and the leader of the opposition.
After taking over on Tuesday night, Rao overhauled the team probing allegations of corruption against Asthana, bringing in completely new faces, officials said.
The account turned bad before Chaudhari took over as SBI chairman and the asset was sold to AARC following an open bidding process, months after Chaudhari retired, explains Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
'The CBI should be bifurcated and the CBI's charter should be restricted to anti-corruption cases.'
'The investigation of major criminal cases having national and international implications, and national crimes spread over more than one state may be entrusted to a new national crime bureau,' recommends Dr Madhav Godbole, the former home secretary.
The apex court agreed to hear on October 26 the petition by Verma challenging the government's decision. He has said in the petition that the CBI should be kept independent of the Department of Personnel and Training, which has jurisdiction over the probe agency, since it seriously hinders the CBI's independent functioning.
Stepping up its attack on the Union Health Minister over the removal of All India Institute of Medical Sciences Chief Vigilance Officer Sanjeev Chaturvedi, the Aam Aadmi Party on Friday called for the immediate sacking or resignation of Harsh Vardhan.
Bankers said the mammoth task of cleaning up the PSBs and improving their health will be a mammoth task for any chief executive.
PMO's stance came as part of a reply to the whistle-blower forest officer, Sanjiv Chaturvedi, after he dragged the PMO to the Central Information Commission for denying information under the RTI Act.
'Alok Verma can say he was helpless, but he could have made representations to the CVC, the Chief Justice of India or the prime minister in writing.' 'He could have told them that his number 2 was not cooperating and is corrupt, but he did not do that.' 'He acted arbitrarily and in a hurried manner, overnight.'
The sad truth is that the debt-to-GDP ratio will shoot up close to 90 per cent in the coming year, and the fiscal deficit glide path does not promise to reduce it substantially any time soon, predicts Mihir S Sharma.
Chary also says some government officials have played an important role in favouring organisations that MCX competes with.
Since the court had earlier questioned distribution of mining rights through the screening committee route, experts say the solution worked out would be weighed on the basis of legality.
Delhi's power circles can expect a surprise when a not-so-known officer is appointed to head the CBI.
A petition has sought laying down of specific mechanisms to ensure transparency in the process of appointment of CBI director.
Citing overlapping of functions, a parliamentary committee on Monday recommended integrating Central Vigilance Commission and anti-corruption wing of the Central Bureau of Investigation to work directly under the command and control of Lokpal to deal with corruption cases.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday filed its first charge-sheet in a Delhi court in the coal blocks allocation case against Navabharat Power Pvt Ltd for allegedly misrepresenting facts and making "fraudulent" claims to "embellish" its applications to get allotments between 2006 and 2009.
'I was at a very senior position in the CBI and what happens is, hints are dropped for you to act upon. But then it depends upon your conscience, to do it or otherwise.' 'I know the rank and file of the CBI, they will bounce back; it is the leadership which has failed.'
'Forget Asthana. Forget Alok Verma. It is this government that has done the greatest damage.' 'My biggest worry is that they have made the CBI a puppet of the government.' 'They want the CBI director to act as per the wishes of the government.'
A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi ordered that the confidential CVC report be given to Verma in a sealed cover and asked him to respond to it by Monday, also in a sealed cover. It will take up the matter on Tuesday.
'We can't have the best of both worlds -- large, efficient, world class government-owned banks, doing social banking and making profits. 'Why not set them free from the shackles of such obligations and run them as business units?' says Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
One of the urgent tasks ahead for the new government should be to improve public trust in the executive.
'The autonomy of essential institutions is clearly under question as the Modi government seeks to influence them politically.' 'The credibility of institutions such as the EC, the CBI, the CVC, the UPSC, the RBI, media, and universities, has been compromised,' notes Zoya Hasan, the distinguished political thinker.
'Mr. Modi has now become 1st PM to have his illegal orders set aside by the SC'
The overriding objective of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) must be adequate economic return, not financial return.
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