Babri case: SC questions CBI over delay in filing appeal

CBI said its appeal was pending before higher authorities for their approval and opinion

The Supreme Court today questioned CBI for the delay in filing appeal against the Allahabad High Court order that conspiracy charge will not apply to BJP leader L K Advani and others in the Babri Masjid demolition case.

A bench headed by Justice H L Dattu directed that an affidavit be filed within two weeks by a senior law officer of the central government after noting that the delay of 167 days was caused because of a law officer.

In compliance with the apex court's earlier order, CBI today placed before the bench the case details in which it submitted that the delay was caused as the drafting of the appeal against the Allahabad High Court verdict was pending before Additional Solicitor General and Solicitor General for their approval and opinion.

"The delay was on the part of Solicitor General. So affidavit from the concerned person would facilitate us to understand the delay," the bench said.

"In your interest it is better if an affidavit is filed," the court said, granting two weeks time to CBI to get the affidavit filed by the senior law officer.

The bench, however, in its order did not mention the officer who would be filing the affidavit and said it should be filed by a senior law officer.

The apex court was hearing CBI's appeal challenging the verdicts of a special CBI court and the Allahabad High Court dropping conspiracy charge against Advani, Kalyan Singh, Uma Bharti, Vinay Katiyar and Murli Manohar Joshi.

The others against whom the charge was dropped included Satish Pradhan, C R Bansal, Ashok Singhal, Giriraj Kishore, Sadhvi Ritambhara, V H Dalmia, Mahant Avaidhynath, R V Vedanti, Param Hans Ram Chandra Das, Jagdish Muni Maharaj, B L Sharma, Nritya Gopal Das, Dharam Das, Satish Nagar and Moreshwar Save.