New Delhi, November 20: Upset over "leak" of a confidential information, the Supreme Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing in the bribery case against exiled CBI director Alok Verma till November 29. "None of you deserve a hearing," remarked Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi while deferring the proceedings.
Senior advocate Fali Nariman, who represented Verma in the courtroom today, was handed over a copy of the CVC inquiry report. A fuming CJI told Nariman that he is being provided a copy considering his "respected" position in the Bar and "not as Verma’s lawyer". Alok Verma Files Response to CVC Inquiry Report in Supreme Court.
Till now, the copy of the CVC report was only handed over to the tainted CBI chief in a sealed cover on Friday. The court had then asked him to file his response by Monday -- a directive to which Verma duly complied.
On November 16, CBI special director Rakesh Asthana, who had levelled the bribery charge against Verma, had petitioned the court seeking a copy of the Vigilance probe report.
The bench had turned his request, stating that the report is exhaustive and it is complimentary on some charges. "If required, there can be a further probe into the matter," the court had remarked.
Both Verma and Asthana were stripped of their charges on October 23-24 after counter-allegations were levelled by them against each other. The matter reached the top court after Verma moved a petition challenging the constitutional validity of the action taken against him.
Along with Verma, NGO Common Cause and Congress' Lok Sabha leader Mallikarjun Kharge also filed a plea before the Supreme Court, calling the government's action as "illegal" and "arbitrary".
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 20, 2018 11:41 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).