The CBI 'detour'

In normal course, no businessmen would ever like to go anywhere near the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office, but these days several industry tycoons who come to meet the finance minister or his senior officers in North Block invariably do just that. The entry to the finance minister's office is from Gate no 2 of North Block, but internally it is connected to the home ministry where the CBI chief sits. So to avoid the TV cameras after meeting the finance minister, businessmen often leave from gate no 3 or 4 in the home ministry. Kumar Mangalam Birla often takes that route and Vodafone executives did the same last week. Apparently, it was finance ministry officials who offer visitors this advice.