Enough, CBI throws up hands

Fed up with the ‘‘non-cooperation’’ on part of the Uttar Pradesh government and too many corruption cases to handle, the...

Fed up with the ‘‘non-cooperation’’ on part of the Uttar Pradesh government and too many corruption cases to handle, the CBI has requested the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court not to recommend fresh cases to it.

‘‘The CBI is overburdened with investigation cases. It has limited manpower and resources to handle the cases already recommended,’’ said a senior CBI official by way of explaining the agency’s request.

The CBI’s ‘‘explanation’’ formed part of an impleadment application in reply to a PIL in the HC against ‘‘76 officials including two dozen IAS/IPS and PCS officers who swindled Rs 35,000 crore of public money’’. The PIL, filed by Sudhendra Nath Tripathi, was taken up on Wednesday before a two-member bench.

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‘‘Even if investigations are taken up and allegations are found true, the onus of giving the sanction for prosecution of officers lies with the state government which either comes late or remains elusive and therefore, the investigation will serve no purpose,’’ observed the agency through its counsel.

Even as the CBI cites lack of manpower and resources as reasons for not taking up fresh cases, the Income Tax department has also refused to initiate proceedings against two officials, Akhand Pratap Singh and Diwakar Tripathi, who were named in the PIL for amassing wealth and property disproportionate to their known sources of income. ‘‘The petitioner has not given specific details of benami properties owned by the two officials,’’ the department claimed in the court.

Meanwhile, the Vigilance Department here cannot even refuse cases as it falls directly under the state government. In a recent development, the Vigilance Department had lodged cases of corruption against two officials and was awaiting permission from the government to go ahead for prosecution but the government directed that the Vigilance inquiries against the two be withdrawn.

The two IAS officials who have got reprieve from the government are Arvind Mohan, former Mandi Parishad director and R.A. Prasad, assistant director against whom an FIR was lodged on January 13 for amassing wealth disproportionate to their income.

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The withdrawal of inquiries comes at a time when the high court is already scrutinising the Mayawati government’s decision to withdraw Vigilance inquiries against 24 officials of the state (PCS) and the All India cadre (IAS/IPS).

The court has also been asked to seek details from the government on why Vigilance inquiries were withdrawn against these officials and the state government is expected to come out with its reply within two weeks.

‘‘As per a 1997 Government Order, the state government has the sole discretion of giving sanction or withdrawing Vigilance inquiries at any time,’’ said a government official requesting anonymity.