New Delhi: A day after Central Bureau of Investigation director Alok Verma was unceremoniously sent on leave, amidst reports that he was planning to probe the Rafale deal, Congress president Rahul Gandhi alleged that the prime minister, Narendra Modi, had no choice but to divest the top officer of his duties as a probe on the controversial purchase of 36 fighter jets would have been “political suicide” for both the prime minister and his government.Although the CBI spokesperson today clarified that both Verma and his deputy Rakesh Asthana, who was accused in a corruption case, were not sacked and were only asked to go on leave until the Central Vigilance Commission finishes its inquiry on the allegations against the two top officials, Gandhi said that Verma was effectively sacked as he was about to “begin an investigation on the role of the prime minister in the Rafale deal and the corruption that was carried out by the prime minister in the Rafale deal”.“What was the reason for the government to remove the CBI director at 2 am? Why not at 9 am or 11 am the next morning?” he asked, adding that the government acted in “panic” as it came to know that Verma would have initiated a probe into the Rafale deal. “If the probe would have been initiated, then the whole country would have known about the prime minister’s corruption and that he handed over a Rs 30,000-crore gift to Anil Ambani,” he added.Also read: With Alok Verma’s Ouster, Fate of Probes Into Opposition Leaders UncertainHe also questioned the legality of the decision to remove Verma. “The decision is illegal and criminal. The CBI director can only be appointed or removed by a collegium consisting of the prime minister, the leader of opposition and the chief justice of India. This is an insult to the constitution of India, insult to the the chief justice of India, the leader of opposition and insult to the Indian people,” he said.“The fact is,” he added, “the prime minister will attack every institution to save himself. He committed a crime in the Rafale deal. And now he will keep committing more such crimes to hide his corruption. I want to say that we, as opposition, will keep telling the Indian people that prime minister is hiding something. Throughout all this (the recent developments at CBI), the prime minister has been silent. This shows that he is corrupt,” he said, adding that Modi has now appointed an allegedly tainted officer, M.Nageswar Rao, to head the CBI.“Why would he appoint a tainted officer as the interim CBI director? Only because he knows that only a corrupt person can save his face in the Rafale deal,” the Congress president said.Also read: Four IB Operatives Held for Snooping Outside CBI Director Alok Verma’s ResidenceSoon after the CBI director and his deputy, Rakesh Asthana, who was in a war-like situation with his boss after an FIR related to his involvement in a bribery and corruption case was registered against him last week, were asked to go on leave, Gandhi had pointed out the alleged linkages between the government’s sudden decision and an impending probe on Rafale deal on social media. Several media reports had earlier pointed out that Asthana enjoyed great clout in the prime minister’s office because of which he was made the chief investigating officer in almost all cases which concerned opposition leaders. There is a growing perception that Asthana was being protected by top officials in the government when Verma approved the FIR against his deputy.PM removed the CBI Director to stop him from investigating Rafale.Mr 56 broke the law when he bypassed CJI & LOP.Mr Modi, Rafale is a deadly aircraft with a superb radar. You can run, but you can’t hide from It.— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 24, 2018CBI चीफ आलोक वर्मा राफेल घोटाले के कागजात इकट्ठा कर रहे थे। उन्हें जबरदस्ती छुट्टी पर भेज दिया गया।प्रधानमंत्री का मैसेज एकदम साफ है जो भी राफेल के इर्द गिर्द आएगा- हटा दिया जाएगा, मिटा दिया जाएगा।देश और संविधान खतरे में हैं।— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 24, 2018Since then, Congress leaders have upped their ante against the government, claiming that the Modi government has compromised the autonomy of top investigation agencies like the CBI, CVC and the external intelligence body, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), in trying to hide its wrongdoings.Earlier in the day, leader of opposition Mallikarjun Kharge wrote a stern letter to the prime minister objecting to his decision to remove Verma, who was meant to have a tenure of not less than two years. He asked why he was removed without the government consulting the leader of opposition and the chief justice of India, as is mandatorily required.Also read: Why the Modi Government’s Ouster of Alok Verma Is Likely to Face Legal ChallengeTerming the decision a “blatant, brazen and beleaguered use of (investigative) agencies” by the Centre, he said that the government had no authority to remove the CBI director and the CVC, too, had no right to recommend one for the post. He said that only the collegium comprising the prime minister, chief justice of India and the leader of opposition had the right to do so after an inquiry is done on the allegations against the CBI director.In the letter, Kharge wrote, “First, there are no visible grounds to transfer the Director. The only plausible explanation for this desperate and hasty move is an attempt to scuttle the ongoing investigations into the Special Director’s cases and other cases that might cause significant embarrassment to your government.”“Second, that no one — neither you nor the CVC — enjoy the requisite authority to interfere with the Terms of Service vested in the Director.” He said that the law clearly says that ‘The Director shall not be transferred except with the previous consent of the (Selection) Committee”. In this context, he said that the government should have had the minimum courtesy to inform all stakeholders before taking such a drastic step. The senior Congress leader termed the removal of the CBI director as “illegal, mala fide”, a decision which was taken to “cover-up” the important investigations including the Rafale deal.Also read: With CBI Chief Alok Verma Gone, Fate of Recordings Incriminating Top Officials UnclearWhile addressing the press, Kharge said, “It is true that the CVC has a supervisory role in cases which have been referred to it. But it has no powers to transfer or take action against any individual in the CBI.” He was responding to the government’s justification that the CVC had alleged that Verma was not cooperating with the agency in its probe on allegations of misconduct against him.“Shri Narendra Modi and his partner in crime, Shri Amit Shah, are infamous for their ‘Gujarat Model’ of Snoop-Gate and it comes as no surprise, that they are using the Intelligence Bureau to snoop an officer who was about to unravel the murky dealings in the Rafale Scam. ‘Big Brother Syndrome’ is the prime modus operandi by a Government who has utterly lost the plot,” the Congress leader said, pointing out that there had been similar examples of snooping under Narendra Modi’s chief ministerial tenure in Gujarat. In 2013, the case in which one woman architect was put under illegal surveillance in Gujarat had become a major cause of embarrassment for the Modi government.“It also speaks volumes how the Intelligence Bureau is being interfered and misused for a cheap political end. It is nothing but a despotic, mala fide and dictatorial attempt to intrude into the daily workings of premier agencies like IB, CBI and CVC. This is a dark period for democracy in India and the Congress party with full responsibility wants to underscore this murkiness,” he told the press, adding that the Modi government has always resisted the participation of opposition parties in important democratic institutions which ensure the democratic and honest functioning of any government.Verma has moved the Delhi high court challenging the government’s decision. However, a day before the hearing, the CBI spokesperson said that both Verma and Asthana were mere asked to go on leave until the CVC completes its inquiry and that the two officers were not sacked. In effect, the spokesperson indicated that this would be the government’s position when it presents itself before the court on 26 October.Such a position, many critics of the government said, may look like a good spin on what was perhaps a legally untenable government decision. However, the fact remains that Verma, who was until two days ago supposed to carry out important investigations that may have hurt the government’s image, remains out of the driving seat. M. Nageswar Rao has already replaced him as the agency’s director in the interim period, the duration of which remains unclear as of now.
