Bombay High Court dismisses plea against appointment of former CBI chief

The Bombay High Court has dismissed a petition filed by a former Maharashtra police official who sought to quash the order appointing IPS officer Subodh Jaiswal as the director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The plea, filed by retired Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Rajendra Trivedi, had also requested the court to restrain Jaiswal from carrying out his duties as the CBI director until the case was disposed of.

However, on Thursday, the Additional Solicitor General of Maharashtra, Devang Vyas, told the court that "Subodh Jaiswal’s term as the Director of CBI came to an end on May 25, 2023, which has rendered the petition pointless".

Advocates Satish Talekar and Madhavi Ayappan, representing Rajendra Trivedi, stated their client would withdraw the petition in the case.

But they pointed out that the allegations in the plea pertained to corruption charges and added that they "have instructions that Jaiswal will be appointed as the chairman of UPSC."

Talekar requested liberty to approach the court if such an appointment occurred.

The bench comprising Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor stated that if such an appointment were made, it would constitute a fresh cause of action.

The present petition solely concerned Jaiswal's appointment as the CBI chief, so there was no need for the liberty to file a new petition, the court said.

WHY WAS THE PLEA FILED?

At the core of Trivedi's plea is the Telgi scam, which Jaiswal was probing as the head of a Special Investigating Team (SIT).

During various court hearings, Jaiswal was criticised for the manner in which the investigation was conducted. The case was ultimately transferred to the CBI on March 15, 2004.

The plea asserted that an officer appointed as the CBI director must be the most senior IPS officer with experience in investigating anti-corruption cases and impeccable credibility.

Trivedi said that Jaiswal lacked experience in investigating anti-corruption cases as he was never attached to the anti-corruption unit of the force.

However, Jaiswal refuted this, alleging that Trivedi had filed the petition out of "personal grudge" and "sheer vendetta and vengeance" against him. He stated that his appointment as CBI chief was solely based on merit.