Bofors case: CBI withdraws plea seeking further probe

The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday withdrew its application seeking further probe into the Rs 64-crore Bofors payoff case from a Delhi court.

The CBI has moved the application in February 2018 seeking further investigation in the case in view of fresh evidence in the case.

The agency told Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Navin Kumar Kashyap that the agency would later decide the future course of action, but for now, it wanted to withdraw the application.

The CBI argued that since for conducting the investigation, permission of the court is not required by the agency, it intends to withdraw its application.

The judge agreed with the CBI, saying the agency has the right to withdraw the application because it is the applicant who had filed the original application, and is the authority concerned that dealt with the original case.

The court in previous hearings had questioned the CBI why it required permission to further probe the matter. The court had observed on May 8 that when independent right and power is available with the CBI to further investigate the matter on its own, why such an application should be filed in the court.

Later in the day, the CBI in a press statement said, that its probe into the Bofors case will continue.

"In view of certain revelations made by one Michael Hershman, the CBI sought the permission of the trial court to conduct further investigation in the Bofors case.

"After obtaining legal opinion, the CBI filed an application on May 16, 2019 in the court of CMM, Rouse Avenue Courts, New Delhi, stating that for conducting further investigation under section 173(8) of CrPC, permission of the court is not required by CBI and an intimation to the court in this regard will suffice," the CBI said.

--IANS

ak/prs