CBI Unfettered

CBI Unfettered

The Supreme Court’s landmark judgement giving functional autonomy by unfettering CBI from executive and political control is laudable. However, whether it was necessary to put the CBI under the control of the Central Vigilance Commission will remain a debatable point. Often, obnoxious proposals are made by various quarters to scuttle and strangulate the investigation process, and but for the Supreme Court intervention, the practice could have gone unabated.

Last year Government came out with a proposal to bar the Central Bureau of Investigation from initiating any legal proceedings against serving or former ministers without prior permission of the Prime Minister. That came closely on the heels of the suggestion to exclude MPs and MLAs from the purview of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the finance ministry’s proposal to obtain its prior permission before initiating action against officers of public sector banks in the rank of general managers and above. All these proposals would have helped only to make a mockery of the rule of law as by the time investigation starts after getting permission from the appropriate authority, the person involved would have covered his tracks well.

The Supreme Court decision also proves a point that the concept of “equality before law” enshrined in our constitution, which was hitherto considered a myth would soon become a reality. At a time when pillars of democratic institutions start crumbling, it is heartening to note that the Supreme Court has come to our rescue by enforcing the rule of law.

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