CBI officer who probed Asthana says he’s being ‘victimised’, moves SC against transfer

File photo of A K Bassi outside CBI headquaters | PTI

CBI special director A.K. Bassi accuses interim director Rao of representing ‘elements in CBI who did not want free and fair probe’ against Rakesh Asthana. 

New Delhi: The infighting in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), it appears, is far from over.

The legal wrangling, the result of the discord in the agency, continues as CBI special director A.K. Bassi Monday filed a fresh plea in the Supreme Court challenging his transfer to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Bassi is the investigating officer in the bribery case against ousted CBI special director Rakesh Asthana, whose tussles with his boss, CBI director Alok Verma, also removed by the Modi government, had precipitated the crisis.

He had been transferred to Port Blair by interim director L. Nageswar Rao in October but the orders had fluctuated as the crisis shuttled between the Supreme Court and the high-powered committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Justice A.K. Sikri and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Mallikarjun Kharge.

When the Supreme Court restored Verma on 8 January, he, in turn, reversed all transfers ordered by Rao. Days later, however, the high-powered committee divested Verma of his duties. Shortly thereafter, Rao was restored as the interim director, and he again reversed Verma’s transfer orders.

Simply put, Bassi who was first transferred to Port Blair by Rao in October 2018 was transferred back to New Delhi by Verma earlier this month, only to be transferred back to the island territory two days later by Rao.

In his fresh plea, filed by advocate Sunil Fernandez Monday, Bassi has reiterated that his abrupt transfer — similar to the one in October — was aimed at scuttling the investigation against Asthana. He has also alleged that he is being “victimised” by Rao, who, his plea adds, represents “elements in the CBI” who had not wanted Bassi to conduct a free and fair trial against Asthana.

ThePrint reveals details of his plea:

On his transfer

Bassi’s plea states that his transfer order was “cryptic” and “cavalier” in nature and that it did not even make an attempt to distinguish between his case and that of Verma’s.

“It is also noteworthy that while there were some purported reasons for the transfer of Shri Alok Verma as the Director-CBI, there are absolutely no allegations whatsoever against the petitioner (Bassi) herein to warrant such extreme action,” the plea reads. “The respondent (Rao) has sought to paint the petitioner herein with the same brush without any cogent reason whatsoever.”

‘Aimed at scuttling probe’ 

Bassi has stated that since his transfer, the investigation against Asthana has been taken over by Sathish Dagar, an SP in the CBI. He has also accused Dagar of not “concentrating his efforts on the allegations” in the FIR against Asthana but instead starting a “roving and fishing enquiry in the investigation made” by Bassi.

He has further alleged that there is “reasonable apprehension” that Dagar “has been instructed to ensure that” Asthana is “ultimately provided with a clean chit”.

His petition also alleges that he is being “victimised by the present ‘acting/ interim’ CBI director” M. Nageswara Rao, who, the plea adds, “represents certain elements” within the CBI “who did not want the petitioner (Bassi) to conduct a free and fair investigation” against Asthana.

Transfer bad in law 

Bassi’s plea also claims that the transfer is bad in law and that he had “lawfully discharged his duties” on the two days he was posted in Delhi — 9 and 10 January.

The plea states that Bassi had performed certain official and administrative tasks during the two days, which, it adds, the transfer order does not address.

“The impugned transfer does not go into the merits of any decisions taken or functions performed by the Petitioner herein over the course of the said two day period but passes a generic order rendering everything and all acts performed by the Petitioner herein as non-est i.e., unlawful and void ab initio,” it adds.

In his plea, Bassi has also asked to be assigned to the team probing the Asthana FIR. “The petitioner herein does have a vested right to be protected against invidious discrimination and victimisation merely for discharging his duties with integrity, without any fear or partiality,” he has added.