Supreme Court asks CBI director Ranjit Sinha to file response

The Supreme Court (SC) has directed Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Ranjit Sinha to respond to allegations of his having met several of the accused in the 2G scam, via an affidavit.

Sinha's lawyer Vikas Singh said, "The Supreme Court said that there is a detailed affidavit filed by Prashant Bhushan against Sinha and it would appreciate if the CBI director also files his response. I was against this because I felt that it would disclose the entire decision-making process of the CBI, which may not be desirable. Hearing our plea, the court directed that what we have to say on merit can be put in a sealed cover and submitted to the court."

Singh claimed that the manner in which Bhushan acquired the visitors log book was questionable. "As far as the visitor's log book is concerned, the way it has surfaced in the possession of Prashant Bhushan, it is quite clear that it was created on his behest or his insistence. He says that some unidentified people came to his residence and gave him the visitor's book. If that is the case, then the court may ask him to disclose his source in a sealed cover."

Singh also claimed that Prashant Bhushan is attempting to tarnish the reputation of the CBI by implicating its director. He said, "Through his actions, it is not the director but the very organisation that Bhushan is trying to tarnish. The real damage will be to the CBI because directors come and go."

Singh also added that they would file the affidavit in court before the next hearing on the coming Monday, that is September 15.