CBI DIG who supervised probe against fmr special director repatriated

CBI DIG Tarun Gauba, who was supervising the probe against former Special Director Rakesh Asthana, has been prematurely repatriated by the Prime Minister-led Appointments Committee of the Cabinet "on his request", according to agency officials.

Gauba, a 2001-batch IPS officer from the Uttar Pradesh cadre who had also probed Vyapam cases, has been sent back to his cadre, according to a government order issued Wednesday.

"Approval of the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) is hereby conveyed for the premature repatriation of Tarun Gauba...to his state cadre," an order issued Wednesday said.

The CBI said it was done "on his request" as he has been selected for a course abroad.

"Seven years tenure of the officer was coming to an end on October 28, 2019, beyond which he could not have been retained by the agency. In the meanwhile, the officer got Fulbright Scholarship for an advanced course in the University of Minnesota, starting August 1, 2019," CBI spokesperson said.

He said the officer requested to be repatriated back to his cadre so that he doesn't miss this opportunity.

Gauba was appointed by former CBI Additional Director M Nageswar Rao to supervise the probe against Asthana.

The move comes days after Rao was transferred from the agency to Director General, Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guard.

Rao had changed the team probing the alleged corruption case against Asthana after taking over as interim chief in October last year when the government had sent the then CBI Director Alok Verma and his deputy Asthana on leave as both levelled allegations of corruption on each other.

Gauba was given charge to supervise the probe.

When Verma was brought back in January through a Supreme Court order, he did not change Gauba's position but transferred the investigating officer of the case.

He would have completed his seven years tenure on October 28, 2019.

The government on May 23, 2018 had extended his tenure from May 29, 2018 to October 28, 2019 (seven years in total).