Allow Cookies!
By using our website, you agree to the use of cookies
The SC on Tuesday held M Nageswara Rao, one of the top officers at the Central Bureau of Investigation guilty of contempt of court for ordering the transfer of an investigating officer, Arun Kumar Sharma who was the head of the CBI team investigating the sexual abuse of children at Muzaffarpur ’s government-run shelter homes case. The direction was made by M Nageswara Rao in breach of the orders of the Court. The issue related to the alleged rape and sexual abuse of some girls at an NGO-run shelter home in Muzaffarpur which had come to light following a report made by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS).
CJI Ranjan Gogoi said, "It's not an error. It's willful disobedience" also finding that S Bhasu Ram, in-charge Director of Prosecution CBI guilty of contempt. The SC bench led by CJI Ranjan Gogoi while rejecting their pleas imposed a fine of Rs. one lakh on Rao and his legal adviser regarding the transfer orders. Rao passed the transfer orders in his capacity as interim chief of CBI in spite of SC’s direction that the investigation team should not be altered. The Court asked Rao and the legal adviser to sit in a corner of the CJI’s courtroom till the rising of the Court.
CJI Gogoi was dissatisfied with Attorney General KK Venugopal's explanation that Rao made an error of judgment in transferring Joint Director AK Sharma and that Rao’s mistake was not willful.
In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court, the officer had said that he accepts his mistake of not seeking permission before transferring the officer probing the Muzaffarpur shelter homes case. CJI also expressed his concern to the AG regarding the fact that a contemnor was being safeguarded at the Court's expense. Ranjan Gogoi held Rao's action to be 'brazen contempt' and he deserved no mercy.
The CJI in reply to the AG’s submission that he holds an unblemished track record of 32 years remarked, "Even if we accept his apology, his career record will remain blemished, as he has admitted of committing contempt". On February 7, the bench noted that CBI transferred its former Joint Director A K Sharma who was heading the investigation team of Bihar's shelter home cases violating the court’s earlier orders in respect of which its then interim chief M Nageswara Rao was called to personally appear before the court on February 12. The Court noted the violation of two earlier orders of the apex court and subsequently issued contempt notice to Rao for disobeying the court’s orders without the Court’s prior consent.
The bench comprising Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna, directed CBI Director Rishi Kumar Shukla to give the names of officers who formed part of the process in transferring Sharma out of the investigation agency.
In the affidavit, Rao offered an unconditional and unqualified apology to the apex court. The bench also asked all other CBI officers who were involved in the transfer process of Sharma and S Bhasu Ram, in-charge Director of Prosecution CBI, to appear before the Court on February 12.
86540
103860
630
114
59824