The Supreme Court questioned why the CBI was being used to “fight political battles” while hearing the Jharkhand Assembly recruitment case. The Court refused to allow a preliminary CBI inquiry and criticised the agency’s early involvement.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday strongly questioned the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) over why the agency was being used to “fight political battles” while hearing a case linked to alleged illegal appointments and promotions in the Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha.
A Bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran was hearing petitions filed against a September 2024 order of the Jharkhand High Court, which had asked the CBI to investigate the claims of irregular recruitments in the State Assembly.
The Supreme Court had already put this High Court order on hold in November 2024. The Jharkhand Government has also filed its own Special Leave Petition challenging the same direction.
During Tuesday’s hearing, the Court took up an interlocutory application filed by the CBI. The agency sought permission to start a preliminary inquiry in the matter. The Supreme Court refused to allow this request at this stage.
CJI Gavai questioned the CBI’s approach and asked Additional Solicitor General SV Raju,
“Why do you use the machinery for your political battles? We have told you so many times.”
The Chief Justice also recalled concerns raised earlier in cases involving the Tamil Nadu TASMAC and Karnataka MUDA matters, where similar issues of political misuse of investigating agencies such as the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had been flagged by the Court.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha, also criticised the CBI’s conduct. He told the Court,
“It is shocking that when matters come up, CBI appears in that court beforehand.”
To this, ASG Raju said,
“Not in this case.”
Sibal then responded,
“Not only here, in many cases. In West Bengal, My Lords have seen it.”
The ASG replied,
“The reason is obvious, when there is an offence, we appear.”
The case began with a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a social worker, Shiv Shankar Sharma, before the Jharkhand High Court.
He sought implementation of a 2018 direction that he said was issued by the then Governor to the then Speaker concerning 30 reference points identified by an Enquiry Commission about illegal appointments in the Assembly.
Sharma also requested that the CBI be asked to look into the alleged illegal recruitment process. In September 2024, the Jharkhand High Court agreed with the PIL and ordered a preliminary CBI investigation.
The High Court observed that the allegations indicated
“illegal appointments… with connivance of high-ups of the State including the then Speaker…”
It said that giving the matter to an independent agency such as the CBI was necessary to ensure a fair, transparent and complete investigation.
The High Court added that such a step was required to maintain public confidence, especially as senior officials of the State were involved in the allegations.
The Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha has argued before the Supreme Court that the High Court made a mistake by ordering a CBI probe right at the beginning, without giving strong reasons for ignoring the State police, which would normally be the first investigating authority.
The Supreme Court will hear further arguments from all sides when the matter comes up again.
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