NEW DELHI: The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has flagged that as many as 60 cases of departmental action are pending against Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials, and among these, 22 have been pending for more than four years.
In its annual report for the year 2024, the CVC noted that the pendency of the cases against CBI officials reflects on the reputation and image of the country’s premier investigation agency.
As of December 31, 2024, as many as 39 departmental cases against Group ‘A’ officers and 21 cases against Group ‘B’ and ‘C’ personnel of the CBI have been pending at various stages, it said.
The CVC has the power of superintendence over the CBI in connection with the agency’s investigations relating to offences, which are alleged to have been committed under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
In the report the anti-graft watchdog also reviewed the progress of cases pending with respective authorities for the want of sanction to prosecute corrupt government officials, as the CBI has reported that at the end of 2024, a total of 200 cases were pending for grant of prosecution sanction under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, which belong to 46 different ministries, departments and affiliated organisations.
In these cases pending with various organisations, 534 requests have been made for granting prosecution sanction, as some of the cases involved more than one accused person, it said. Of the total, 106 cases were pending prosecution sanction for over three months.
It is to be noted that competent authorities are expected to decide on cases of sanction of prosecution within three months and another month can be provided in cases where there is a requirement for consultation with the Attorney General or any law officer in his office.
The CVC, on regular intervals, sends reminders to authorities concerned in the central government departments and organisations to expedite decisions in cases pending for sanction for prosecution beyond the mandatory time limit given in the Act, it said in the report.
It also mentioned that over 1,500 posts were lying vacant in the CBI. “The total sanctioned strength of CBI as on December 31, 2024, was 7,300, against which 5,798 officials were in positions; 1,502 posts were lying vacant,” it noted.
The highest of 887 posts in the ‘executive ranks’’ are lying vacant, 503 of ‘ministerial staff’, 57 of ‘technical officers’, 48 of ‘law officers’ and seven of ‘canteen staff’, the CVC said in the report.