Non-bailable warrant against ACB chief put on hold

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday suspended till September 23 the non-bailable warrant against Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) chief M.K. Meena issued by the inquiry commission set up by the city government to probe the CNG fitness scam.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath kept on hold the September 11 order and proceedings of the inquiry commission by which the NBW was issued against Meena for not appearing before the Special Investigation Team.

The court's order came while hearing a plea of the central government for quashing the inquiry commission's order and also challenging the constitutionality and the establishment of the commission.

The commission on September 11 also issued an order that 30 percent of Meena's salary be attached every month.

On September 3, the one-member probe panel headed by Justice (retd) S.N. Agarwal asked Meena to appear before it over his directions to his subordinates not to share information pertaining to the CNG scam.

The Arvind Kejriwal government on August 11 announced the appointment of a commission of inquiry to be headed by a retired Delhi High Court judge to probe the multi-crore-rupee CNG vehicle fitness scam. A number of officials of the previous Sheila Dikshit government were under the scanner for it.

The probe pitted the city and the central governments against each other, with the union home ministry declaring the commission of inquiry "legally invalid".

The Centre said the probe will be continued by the ACB, but the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government said it will not pay heed to the Centre's decree.

The control of the ACB has been one of the contentious issues between the AAP government and Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung.

The CNG fitness scam surfaced in 2012 when the ACB found that the Delhi government had lost over Rs.100 crore by awarding the contract to operate and maintain certification of CNG vehicles at the transport authority in Burari to ESP India Private Limited, instead of ESP USA.