The Supreme Court asked the CBI to investigate the Vyapam scam in Madhya Pradesh and the related deaths and kept open the option of monitoring the probe after the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government pleaded for it and won appreciation from the apex court. “We understand the gravity of the case. We do not want the number of deaths allegedly related to the Vyapam scam to go up even by one more,“ the court said before issuing notice to the CBI on a bunch of petitions. The hearing saw the Chouhan government, under attack for allegedly resisting the probe, showing nimble footedness to steal a march on the opposing side. Even before several senior advocates, including Kapil Sibal, A M Singhvi, Vivek Tankha and Indira Jaising, could open arguments appearing for the Congress leader and former CM Digvijay Singh and other petitioners, attorney general Mukul Rohatgi told the court that the MP government wanted the CBI to probe the entire Vyapam scam.
Indeed, the state government also said it had no objection if the apex court monitored the CBI probe.“Whosoever monitors the investigation, the MP government has no reservation whatsoever,“ the AG said.
When Sibal, Tankha and Jaising wanted to argue more points about the scam that has so far allegedly claimed more than 40 lives, the bench said, “The MP government's plea for CBI probe is broader in ambit than the prayers made in the petitions. We appreciate the AG's stand on behalf of the state government.“
A bench of CJI H L Dattu and Justices Arun Mishra and Amitava Roy had asked Rohatgi whether the MP government was also agreeable to the petitioners' demand for SC monitoring of the CBI probe. Rohatgi said, “Please record my consent for CBI probe into the entire Vyapam scam.We had moved the high court for the same purpose. But the HC deferred the hearing on our application till July 20 on the ground that petitions were pending before the SC. We do not want to wait till July 20. Let the SC order CBI probe into Vyapam scam right away .“
The court hinted that it could monitor the CBI investigation. “Whether we should monitor the CBI investigation or not will be decided after we hear all parties,“ the bench said after issuing notices to the state government, the special task force and the special investigation team that probed the Vyapam scam under high court monitoring.
The SC might end up monitoring the probe when it takes up the matter again on July 24, since the petitioners want it and the MP government has no reservations. It will be interesting to watch the CBI's stand on July 24 as the agency had in the past cited lack of manpower to probe complicated statebased scams.
Indeed, the state government also said it had no objection if the apex court monitored the CBI probe.“Whosoever monitors the investigation, the MP government has no reservation whatsoever,“ the AG said.
When Sibal, Tankha and Jaising wanted to argue more points about the scam that has so far allegedly claimed more than 40 lives, the bench said, “The MP government's plea for CBI probe is broader in ambit than the prayers made in the petitions. We appreciate the AG's stand on behalf of the state government.“
A bench of CJI H L Dattu and Justices Arun Mishra and Amitava Roy had asked Rohatgi whether the MP government was also agreeable to the petitioners' demand for SC monitoring of the CBI probe. Rohatgi said, “Please record my consent for CBI probe into the entire Vyapam scam.We had moved the high court for the same purpose. But the HC deferred the hearing on our application till July 20 on the ground that petitions were pending before the SC. We do not want to wait till July 20. Let the SC order CBI probe into Vyapam scam right away .“
The court hinted that it could monitor the CBI investigation. “Whether we should monitor the CBI investigation or not will be decided after we hear all parties,“ the bench said after issuing notices to the state government, the special task force and the special investigation team that probed the Vyapam scam under high court monitoring.
The SC might end up monitoring the probe when it takes up the matter again on July 24, since the petitioners want it and the MP government has no reservations. It will be interesting to watch the CBI's stand on July 24 as the agency had in the past cited lack of manpower to probe complicated statebased scams.
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