CBI rapped for tardy progress in submarine deal

NEW DELHI, Dec 23: The Delhi High Court has rapped the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for the manner in which it was probing the con...

NEW DELHI, Dec 23: The Delhi High Court has rapped the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for the manner in which it was probing the controversial import of four submarines from Germany, a deal struck during Rajiv Gandhi’s regime as Prime Minister.

A division bench of the High Court last week expressed serious dissatisfaction over the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) failure to ascertain the source from which the commission was paid to certain public servants and senior defence officials in India.

The bench consisting of acting Chief Justice Mahinder Narain and Justice S K Mahajan, hearing a public interest petition filed by environmental and legal activist Dr B L Wadehra, was equally annoyed by the fact that though several years have gone by ever since the deal was struck, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) till date had not been able to name the beneficiaries.

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The court reaction came in response to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) submission that it had definite information regarding the payment of "kick-backs" to certain public servants and senior defence officials, but it had not yet been able to establish the source and beneficiaries of the commission.

"If an information is there that commission had been paid, why can’t Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) gather other information regarding the deal," the bench observed.

It said, "we (the people) should not always be taken for a ride."