NEW DELHI, Mar 31: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a petition filed by the former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh seeking a Central Bureau of India (CBI) investigation against the Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh in the absence of a police complaint.
The High Court asked Singh why he did not lodge a police complaint against Deshmukh if he was aware of an alleged wrongdoing being committed by the minister.
Singh recently claimed that Deshmukh had asked now under detention police officer Sachin Vaze to collect Rs 100 crores per month from bars and restaurants through the police. The minister has denied any wrongdoing.
He approached the High Court after the Supreme Court last week refused to entertain his petition of the same nature and directed him to initiate the proceedings from the HC.
A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni asked Singh why he did not lodge a complaint with the police first, and said without an FIR the HC cannot intervene or direct for an independent agency like the CBI to carry out an investigation.
“You (Singh) are a senior police officer. You are not a layman. You were duty-bound to register a complaint against any wrongdoing. Despite knowing that an offence is being committed by your boss, you (Singh) remained silent,” Chief Justice Datta said.
The HC was hearing a criminal public interest litigation (PIL) filed in the HC on March 25 by Singh, seeking a CBI probe against Deshmukh.
The bench further noted that Singh cannot convert the HC into a magistrate court.
“The proper and appropriate course of action would be for you (Singh) to first lodge a complaint with police. If the police do not lodge an FIR, then you have the option of filing an application before the magistrate,” the court said.
Singh’s counsel Vikram Nankani said his client wanted to avoid this “chakravyuh” (labyrinth).
The HC, however, noted this was the procedure laid down in law.
“Are you saying that you are above the law?” Chief Justice Datta asked.
Nankani argued that he did not have any other option than to approach the HC as the complaint and allegations were against the “very head of the state administration”.
The court further asked Nankani if any statement, as alleged by Singh in the petition against Deshmukh that he had asked police officers to extort money was made by the Home minister in Singh’s presence.
“Was any of these statements made by the Home Minister in Singh’s presence? Otherwise this is nothing but hearsay,” the court said.
The HC further said there was also no affidavit submitted by any of the police officers who were allegedly called by Deshmukh to his residence, supporting the allegations levelled by Singh.
The bench said without an FIR it cannot pass an order directing an independent agency to investigate the matter.
“Our prima facie opinion is that without an FIR, this court cannot order investigation. Your prayer seeking a direction to the CBI to investigate appears to be harsh in the absence of an FIR,” Chief Justice Datta said.
The court further asked if a PIL was maintainable when the issue pertained to a service matter.
Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni, appearing for the Maharashtra government, sought dismissal of the petition with an exemplary cost and claimed the plea was filed with personal vendetta.
“The PIL is not filed in public interest, but is riddled with personal grievances and interests. The petitioner has come to this court with dirty hands and dirty mind,” Kumbhakoni said.
The PIL filed by Singh also raised the issue of alleged corruption in police transfers and postings in the state.
Singh, however, had written a letter to the chief minister leveling the extortion charges against Deshmukh only after he was transferred to non-descript post of home guards department on March 17 in the wake of arrest of Vaze in connection with the parking of the explosive-laden SUV near the residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani.
(Manas Dasgupta)
