NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narasimha Rao told the Lok Sabha that there was “nothing unusual” in the Supreme Court order asking the CBI to report to the apex court in the hawala case.
The Opposition expressed total dissatisfaction with his brief intervention during which he also said that a “detailed factual reply” would be given by his colleague, Margaret Alva, the Minister of State for Personnel, Opposition leaders reiterated their demand that the Prime Minister should step down to facilitate a proper inquiry into the matter.
Rao said that the Supreme Court had been overseeing the various stages of the investigations and the CBI had been acting directly under the directions of the Supreme Court. Asked by an Opposition MP: “From when,” the Prime Minister retorted, “From the very beginning.”
He said that “neither the CBI director nor any of his officers have been reporting to any authority about any particulars relating to these investigations.” The order of the Supreme Court accords fully with the Government’s view as to how the CBI should act in this case, he added.
He equated the apex court order taking away his power over the CBI with other cases, such as custodial death etc. entrusted by the Supreme Court and High Courts to the CBI.
Rao further stated that the law of the land should be allowed two take its course; there will be no departure from this under any circumstances, “Since the case is pending in the Supreme Court, it may not be advisable for me to add anything more at this stage,” he added
Opposition leaders, however, were not at all convinced and stated that if everything was normal “why should the Supreme Court issue such an order.” CPM leader Somnath Chatterjee and CPI veteran Indrajit Gupta said that following the Supreme Court order, the CBI was not under the control of the executive anymore and therefore, there was no accountability to Parliament. Such a situation was unacceptable in a parliamentary democracy as accountability was the bedrock of the system, they added.
Chatterjee said that since the Supreme Court has not excluded the Prime Minister from the scope of the hawala inquiry, propriety demands that he should “voluntarily step down.
Gupta said that we must get to the bottom of this “murky affair” as the security of the country was involved. “It is simply not enough that the culprits should be allowed to get away merely by resigning and then coming back and sitting in this hall: those found guilty should be punished a: cording to the law.” he added.
The deputy leader of the BJP, Jaswant Singh, said that the Supreme Court had by taking the CBI out of Prime Minister’s control “expressed its no confidence in him.” The order of the apex court clearly showed that there ‘was apprehension of bias not against the CBI, as it was still handling the case, but against the Prime Minister who headed the investigating agency, he added.
He criticized the Prime Minister for leaving the detailed reply to Margaret Alva. How can a/mere minister of state reply to such an important issue which entails the security of the country and its democratic institutions, he Arjun Singh said that the Supreme Court order shows that investigations ‘were not being carried out on the night lines. The Prime Minister must give an answer as he is the leader of the House.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 13, 1996
