BJP wrong in criticising CBI director's appointment: Jethmalani

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of Parliament Ram Jethmalani has again embarrassed his party, this time by openly supporting the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s decision to appoint Ranjit Sinha as director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Jethmalani criticised senior BJP leaders, especially leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, and leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley, for asking the government to keep the decision in abeyance till Parliament passed the Lok Pal and the Lokayukta Bills.

“I was astonished to see BJP attacking the prime minister and the Congress party for what it calls the fast-tracked appointment of Ranjit Sinha as CBI director…. This criticism is the result of complete ignorance of relevant facts. It has possibly been instigated by an undesirable rival who had to withdraw his petition before the CAT (Central Administrative Tribunal) as a result of this appointment,” Jethmalani said in a letter to BJP president Nitin Gadkari.

“I have to request you to ensure critics from our party refrain from further comments till they know all the facts. I claim to know the facts from my own knowledge. I will arrange to send to you a huge bunch of documents to show how the governments’ action, for a change, averted a national calamity,” he said, adding, “The rival (Sinha’s) has powerful friends everywhere. They do not know what a disaster it would have been if he could manage to become CBI director in place of Ranjit Sinha.”