The Supreme Court on Friday declined to admit a plea seeking directions at agencies to act on the Vohra Committee report on criminal-politician nexus.
A three-judge bench of Justices S.K. Kaul, Dinesh Maheshwari and Hrishikesh Roy granted petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay liberty to withdraw the plea and approach the Law Commission.
“Write books on your country not petitions.” – Justice Kaul remarked. The public interest petition was filed by Upadhyay seeking a direction to the Centre to hand over the complete report with annexures, memorials and written evidence that were placed before Vohra Committee to the Director NIA, CBI, ED, IB, SFIO, RAW, CBDT, NCB for comprehensive investigation. According to the report, the mafias, smugglers and money launderers have developed an extensive network of contacts with bureaucrats, government functionaries, politicians, legislators, strategically located persons in the non-governmental sector and some of the criminal syndicates have international links with foreign intelligence agencies. The report had recommended that an efficient Nodal Cell be set up with powers to take stringent action against crime syndicates, while ensuring that it would be immune from being influenced. However, no follow-up action on the findings of Vohra Committee Report had been initiated in last 27 years.
The petitioner had urged the Court to setup a Judicial Commission consisting of retired Judge(s) of the Apex Court with sufficient experience of criminal matters to monitor the probe by NIA, CBI, ED, IB, SFIO, RAW, CBDT, NCB into the disclosures that would be made consequent to the directions and further legal action could be pursued by the Court once the Commission submits its complete report. The petitioner also sought a direction to the Lokpal of India to monitor the investigation by these agencies.
The petition also urged the Court to empower Lokpal to exercise statutory powers under the CrPC and declare that it would be able to launch prosecutions against politicians-bureaucrats-criminals on the basis of evidence collected for offences under the IPC and other laws. The Home Secretary should also be directed to withdraw the Padma Awards to politicians whose names have been mentioned in the Vohra report.
EXACTLY WHERE SC JUDICIARIES IS EXPECTED TO ACT/ADVICE POLITICALLY BOUND GOVERNMENT, WHICH HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO MUSTER COURAGE TO TAKE NECESSARY DECISIONS AGAINST CORRUPT PRACTISES PREVALENT IN POLITICIANS, SC JUDICIARIES HAVE FAILED MISERABLY. ONLY GOD CAN SAVE….