Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Joginder Singh has denied accusations that the agency leaked secret information on politically-sensitive scandals to the press or that it has become a political instrument.
No leakage ever takes place from the CBI. None has taken place and none will take place, Singh said in his first interview after being accused in Parliament of selectively leaking an investigation report on the 1986 Bofors gun scandal to the Press.
Singh became the focus of attacks by politicians on both sides of the fence over newspaper reports alleging the CBI had named slain former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi as an accused in the Howitzer gun deal. Angry MPs demanded he be sacked since he had leaked the report to the Press.
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When asked to comment on the opposition charge that the CBI had become a `political instrument', he retorted : Not to my knowledge.
He added : Not even once has the Prime Minister told me to do this or do that. He has never interfered in anything.
Singh said his agency had total legal autonomy. No CBI report ever goes beyond the Director of the CBI, except to the government when sanction is required for prosecution of public servants, he added.
I don't want any trial by the media in these scandals, let me make it very clear, Singh said. In fact, we are also on trial by the media because they go on judging us and accusing us of doing this and doing that.
The CBI chief did not comment when asked if the agency was planning to name any more politicians or bureaucrats in the Bofors case. I can't comment because it would be a breach of confidentiality, and added : Why we do a particular thing, why we don't do a thing, we don't discuss publicly.
Asked why some influential persons believed to be involved in the Bofors scandal had not been questioned by the agency, he said: We don't just go and question because the media writes (about it). We go purely by hard evidence in questioning any witnesses.
Singh, whose agency has often come under criticism from the courts for apparently slack investigation in some cases, denied this was because he was walking the tightrope between political expediency and investigators' evidence.
I don't comment on the courts. Whatever the courts say, I salute them and say you are right and I am wrong, he said. I don't concern myself with politics and I do not take any court criticism in a bad spirit...any criticism for that matter.
When asked if the CBI was confident of pushing cases against different politicians to conviction, Singh said : The job of an investigating agency is to take the cases to the court...it is for the court to assess the legal aspects. From the CBI's side, we never put up a case that is weak, he asserted.
The CBI is handling a mountain of complicated cases and has been often criticised in court for inadequate investigation in several important cases. Analysts say one reason might be that the agency is heavily overworked and is often asked to solve several cases that might be handled by the police. We have plenty of work. We are not short of work, Singh said, but added that he did not see a manpower shortage.
The government has been most generous to us (in sanctioning recruitment of new officers). But it is we who are choosy about selecting people, he said. We want to have people with a good record and integrity.