Supreme Court asks CBI Director Ranjit Sinha to keep away from 2G case

New Delhi: In the first such incident in the history of the nation’s premier investigating agency, the CBI director was on Thursday directed by the Supreme Court to disassociate himself from the ongoing 2G scam case. This is seen as a major setback to CBI director Ranjit Sinha, and comes just 12 days before he is due to retire on December 2.

In a scathing observation, the Supreme Court noted that the allegations against the CBI chief that he had protected some accused persons in the case appear “prima facie credible.” The court also observed that apparently “all is not well” in the agency.

“For us, it appears all is not well and prima facie it seems that allegations made in the application by (an) NGO have some credibility,” the court said in connection with a case on allegations by NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation that claimed Mr Sinha might have tried to save some accused in the 2G scam.

The court handed over the 2G cases to the senior most officer after Mr Sinha, and recalled its earlier order directing Mr Prashant Bhushan to reveal the name of the whistleblower who supplied file notings and guest list register of Mr Sinha’s house.

With the court directing CBI chief to recuse himself from the 2G probe, trouble seems to be brewing for Mr Sinha. There is a strong possibility that the government may ask Mr Sinha to either step down or go on leave. Insiders said the Narendra Modi government is exploring all options.