Probe sought against Altamas Kabir

A city-based activist and a lawyer Friday shot off a letter to the chief justice of India (CJI), seeking a probe into various allegations levelled against former CJI Altamas Kabir.

In their letter, Ashok Pandey and Nutan Thakur have demanded that a probe be ordered into Justice Altamas Kabir's role in the alleged leakage of an order passed on his last day in office.

The duo have cited an article 'Into the Darkness' by Gopal Sankaranarayanan, an advocate with the apex court, published on the website Bar and Bench at 8:36 a.m. Thursday.

Justice Altamas Kabir demitted office of CJI Thursday July 18.

The lawyer in his article said that it was widely rumoured that the appeal by private colleges regarding admission to medical colleges would be allowed with a declaration that the Medical Council of India has no jurisdiction, and that Justice Dave will dissent from this view.

The letter says that it was surprising that a little after three hours, "an almost same kind of judgment was delivered".

"It is for this reason that we have sought an independent inquiry, preferably by a committee headed by a retired chief justice of India and comprising eminent jurists and social activists," Thakur told IANS.

The letter also sought a detailed inquiry into the allegations of not promoting Bhaskar Bhattacharya, former chief justice of the Gujarat High Court, for vested reasons and exerting "undue pressure" on the Supreme Court Collegium to elevate a judge to the apex court.