NEW DELHI: Following the unprecedented move to transfer the officials probing charges of corruption against CBI’s Special Director Rakesh Asthana, the agency’s new interim chief M Nageshwar Rao formed a team with fresh faces to carry out the investigations.
According to sources, the changes have been effected from the investigation officer to the supervisory level. Rao, a 1986-batch Odisha cadre IPS officer, took over the reins of the agency in a late night development. Sources said he has appointed Satish Dagar as the superintendent of police to probe the case. Dagar has previously investigated the cases against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
According to sources, the supervisor of the Asthana bribery case would be DIG Tarun Gauba, who has been part of the team that probed the Vyapam cases in Madhya Pradesh.
V Murugesan has been brought in as a new joint director who will hold the additional charge of joint director, anti-corruption-I, at the CBI headquarters. Murugesan had drawn praise from the Supreme Court for his investigation in the coal scam, officials said.
On the list of officers who have been moved out of the case is deputy superintendent of police A K Bassi, who was the investigating officer in the case. He has been transferred to Port Blair with immediate effect “in public interest”, the CBI order says.
In another order, the agency transferred joint director (policy) Arun Kumar Sinha to the Multi-Disciplinary Monitoring Agency, which is probing the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Senior officer A Sai Manohar has also been transferred and posted as joint director, Chandigarh zone, while Amit Kumar, DIG Economic Offence-III, will hold additional charge of joint director (policy).
The rejig came after Asthana was relieved of his duties on Tuesday. The CBI’s ugly spat came out in the open with Asthana and Verma leveling allegations against each other, forcing the government to relive the two officers from their duties pending completion of inquiries.
Bassi transferred in ‘public interest’
Among the officers moved out of the team probing corruption charges against Rakesh Asthana is deputy superintendent of police A K Bassi, who was the investigating officer. He has been transferred to Port Blair with immediate effect “in public interest”. Asthana had alleged in his complaint to the Central Vigilance Commission that Bassi was carrying out “roving inquiries” against him on the direction of CBI chief Alok Verma. He had alleged that Bassi and joint director A K Sharma were sent to Gujarat to gather material against him. The Congress termed Bassi’s transfer to Andaman Jail as “saja-e-kala paani by an autocratic Modiji”.