New CBI Chief selection tomorrow

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

New CBI Chief selection tomorrow

Mishra, Jaiswal lead the race

List of 20 probables sent to the panel !

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, Jan. 23

All eyes are set on the 3-member Selection committee meeting tomorrow to pick the new CBI chief.

Highly placed sources in the government say that the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Leader of the single largest party in the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge will meet to select the new CBI chief from the panel of around 20 officers short-listed by the government.

CISF Director-General Rajesh Ranjan, BSF DG R K Mishra, Mumbai Police Commissioner Subodh Jaiswal, a 1985 batch IPS officer and external intelligence agency R&AW special secretary Vivek Johri are in the reckoning among these 20 officers. These officers belong to the 1982-85 batch of the IPS officers and hold key positions either in the Central government and/or in state government service.

If the current thinking in the government is any indication, it wants to appoint a person as new CBI chief who has nothing to do with the Gujrat cadre or part of any of the SITs relating to the state when Narendra Modi was Chief Minister or non-controversial.

Some of the saner voices have cautioned the government that its time to “restore the credibility” of the highly respected probe agency and let the successor to Alok Verma be chosen on “merit.”

Y C Modi who was made chief of the National Investigation Agency chief and considered close to the PM, is also in the race. But this 1984-batch Assam-and-Meghalaya-cadre IPS officer, was part of the Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team that probed the 2002 Gujarat riots when Narendra Modi was chief minister. The SIT had given Narendra Modi a clean chit in the Gulbarg Society massacre in which 69 people were killed. He may not be able to make the cut.

Many feel that one of the reasons of the current crisis in the CBI is the gift of the non-experience of Alok Verma who never served the CBI before. Therefore, an officer who has the experience of working in the CBI be given preference.

The list of the probables has been sent by the DoPT under the Prime Minister and vetted by the Central Vigilance Commission. It is in the process of being sent to the 3-member selection panel.

Officiating CBI chief M Nageshwar Rao, an IPS officer of the 1986 batch of the Odisha cadre, is also trying hard to be in the panel. Though he is considered very close to some of the senior RSS leaders, his chances do not look bright considering his junior rank in the batch and surcharged atmosphere.

PM shifts NHAI chief for 'non-performance'

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

“You don’t give grape juice to a Sugar patient” Modi told IAS officer  Raghav Chandra

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, Feb 16

The Modi government has sent shivers down the spine of the bureaucracy. If three senior IAS & IPS officers have been sacked unceremoniously for “non-performance”, National Highway Authority of India chairman Raghav Chandra removed in a mid-night order recently.

The sudden removal of Raghav Chandra took even the Road Transport & Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari by complete surprise.

Highly placed sources in the Prime Minister’s Office say that Chandra was responsible for his own sacking. It so happened that the PM called for a review meeting of projects of the NHAI. The PM holds such review meeting one-on-one basis with the heads without the presence of Ministers concerned to review projects.

When the PM asked Raghav Chandra about the progress with regard to the Rs 10,166 crores 14-lane

Delhi-Meerut Expressway project, Chandra reportedly explained difficulties in completing the project in time. It was in December 2015 when Modi had laid the foundation stone of the project not only easing Delhi’s traffic congestion but also to woo the BJP’s crucial vote bank in the Jat heartland and trading community. The total land required for three packages is 348.6 hectares of which 343.36 hectare had already been acquired when Modi laid the foundation stone.

What sealed Chandra’s fate was that he went a step further and started explaining to the PM how the NHAI is completing other important projects in UP.

The PM, sources say was losing his patience and told Chndra curtly, ““If you give grape juice to a sugar patient, can he survive ? The sugar patient requires Bitter Gourd  (karela) juice.” And the meeting ended abruptly. It was 12.30 midnight when the meeting ended and Raghav Chandra’s transfer orders were on the website of the government website next morning.

For Gadkari, it was another shocker as he had seen three chairmen at the NHAI during his three years’ stint. Raghav Chandra was shunted out to an insignificant post as secretary, national commission for Scheduled Tribes. Yudhvir Singh Malik, who was cooling his heels as special secretary in the Niti Aayog, was sent to NHAI. Malik shot into prominence when he banned Nestle’s products as chairman of the FSSAI. The ban was removed by courts and Malik was shunted out to NITI Aayog a year ago. Interestingly, Gadkari had no clue either of Chandra being shunted out or Malik being brought in.

Umang Narula, an lAS officer belonging to the Jammu and Kashmir cadre and CMD of India Tourism Development Corporation was sent back to his parent cadre. It is learnt he was slow in divesting ITDC hotels.

Babu turns supercop

Cabinet approves law to put CBI, ED under CVC, insulate agencies against interference

"I'll be judge, I'll be jury,' said cunning old Fury." Few fit the role of Fury in Alice In Wonderland better than the Indian bureaucrats. Last week, they mustered all the cunning at their command and secured the Cabinet's approval for an ordinance on the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).