CBI director Alok Verma, who was forcibly sent on leave by the government last month, met Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) KV Chowdary on Thursday and denied corruption charges levelled against him by his deputy and special director Rakesh Asthana, officials said.
Verma came to the CVC office in the late afternoon and met Chowdary and vigilance commissioner Sharad Kumar, they said.
Officials said Asthana, who too was sent on leave along with Verma, also met the CVC.
The Supreme Court had on October 26 asked the Central Vigilance Commission to complete its inquiry into allegations against Verma within two weeks.
The vigilance panel had recently examined some CBI officials probing crucial cases which figured in Asthana’s complaint of corruption against Verma, officials said. They said CBI personnel from the rank of inspector up to the superintendent of police were called and their versions recorded before a senior CVC official.
The court had directed that the CVC’s inquiry into the allegations against Verma, who has challenged the government’s decision divesting him of his duties and sending him on leave, would be conducted under the supervision of retired apex court judge Justice A K Patnaik and this was a “one-time exception”.
The tussle between Verma and Asthana escalated recently, leading to registration of an FIR against the latter and others including DSP Devender Kumar, who is in CBI custody in an alleged bribery case.
The CBI had on October 15 registered the FIR against Asthana for allegedly receiving a bribe of Rs 2 crore from Hyderabad-based businessman Sana Sathish Babu which was given through two middlemen to sabotage the probe against meat exporter Moin Qureshi.
On August 24, Asthana, in his complaint to the cabinet secretary, had alleged that Verma got a bribe of Rs 2 crore from Sana to help him get relief from questioning in the matter.