CBI vs CBI: Special court summons IO Ajay Kumar Bassi for next hearing on February 28

A special court in Delhi has been adjourned till February 28 in the CBI vs CBI alleged graft case and summoned the Investigating Officer (IO) Ajay Kumar Bassi to appear before the court on the next date of hearing. Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal ordered the IO to appear before the court after it was informed that the IO had refused to join the probe despite summons. The court has also directed IO Bassi to explain the case diary maintained by him during the investigation period. 

During the hearing on Wednesday, the court asked the probing agency as to why no lie detector or any other relevant psychology test was conducted on former special CBI Director Rakesh Asthana. Furthermore, the court stated that advocate Sunil Mittal who is a co-accused in the case seems like a fictional character emerging from 'Mission Impossible' and 'James Bond' movies and questioned CBI as to why is it showing so much indulgence to him? 

Earlier on Wednesday, the court had ordered the probe agency to get the case diary and interrogate CBI regarding the investigation details. While talking about Mittal's son-in-law Someshwar Prasad, the court asked the probing agency why it was so indulgent to someone who has not been cooperating at all. 

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What is the CBI vs CBI case? 

In October 2017, CBI's Director then, Alok Verma had handed over a confidential note to the Central Vigilance Commission, which supervises the functioning of the CBI. In the note, Verma had alleged corruption on Rakesh Asthana who had been promoted as the Special Director. Director Verma had alleged that according to a diary found on premises of the company, Asthana was paid Rs 3.88 crore. 

CBI had filed six complaints and an FIR against Asthana for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 5 crore from a Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Babu Sana through two middlemen to help him get off the hook in the Moin Qureshi case money laundering case. CBI has alleged that at least Rs 3 crore had already been paid to Asthana through the middlemen. Meanwhile, the agency also arrested Devendra Kumar, a deputy superintendent of police in the agency, who has been working with Asthana. DSP Kumar was arrested in 2018 and later got bail. 

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(With ANI Inputs)

Image credits: PTI