The Supreme Court on Wednesday, 27 June, allowed the government to probe “serious charges” against Enforcement Directorate officer Rajeshwar Singh, who has been investigating the Aircel-Maxis and 2G spectrum cases.
The bench headed by Justices Arun Mishra and Sanjay K Kaul said, “It will be the government's call whether Rajeshwar Singh will have any role to play in the further probe in the Aircel Maxis case.”
The apex court had previously passed an interim order granting protection to Singh against the inquiry, after a PIL was filed before it by one Rajneesh Kapur, alleging that Singh had disproportionate assets and asking for an “unbiased investigation” into his conduct.
The judges decided to lift this protection after receiving a sealed envelope containing sensitive information from the Centre on 27 June. ASG Vikramjit Banerjee informed them that the government was looking into the matter, while also assuring them that the Centre would ensure that it takes the Aircel-Maxis probe to its logical conclusion.
Information Related to National Security
The judges reviewed the information provided to them by the Centre during a hearing in the morning and pronounced their order at 2 pm.
They refused to divulge details of the information provided to them, noting that it dealt with a highly sensitive issue with implications for national security and interest. Noting that officers investigating serious cases like the Aircel Maxis or 2G spectrum cases should be free from any suspicion, the bench informed Singh that:
“You can’t be given blanket protection. You are accountable and it must be ensured that you are held accountable. We don’t want to comment on you right now, but there are some serious allegations.”
CNN-News18 reported that Singh has gone on a year-long leave now.
ED Backs Singh
The ED released a short statement in the afternoon in support of Singh – asserting that he received a single call in 2016 from a person based in Dubai (the secret information provided to the court reportedly includes references to suspicious international calls), who gave him important information regarding a case being investigated by the ED.
Referring to Singh as a “responsible officer with outstanding career records”, the ED press release also notes that this information was passed on by Singh to the Directorate and used in the investigation.
Subramaniam Swamy Supports Singh
On 26 June, the apex court heard a plea filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy seeking to implead himself as a party to the case. Swamy is a strong backer of Singh, having urged the Supreme Court to make Singh’s position in the ED permanent in 2014, and also supporting the interim order in November 2017 that protected Singh from any action till Wednesday’s proceedings.
The court did not implead Swamy, but he was present during proceedings. After the Supreme Court made its decision, he gave a press conference in which he sought to rebut the information provided to the court in the sealed envelope. According to Swamy, the ASG had provided the judges with details of a RAW intercept which showed contact between Singh and one Danish Shah – a Dubai-based businessman with alleged ISI links.
Swamy, like the ED, refutes this charge, and questions the motivations behind the submission of the alleged RAW intercept, which he terms “stupid”.
Since it was the Centre’s representative in court, the ASG, who brought this information to the notice of the court, Swamy is alleging that this shows a conspiracy against Prime Minister Narendra Modi – which he claims he will expose on 8 July.
What Happens Now?
The court has not ordered any investigation or action against Singh, instead leaving this to the discretion of the Central government.
The order is not supposed to affect the Aircel-Maxis case investigation. As a result, the deadline of 12 September 2018, set by the apex court for the CBI and the ED to complete the investigation into the alleged irregularities in FIPB approval (involving former Finance Minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti), still stands.
In March, the court had expressed concerns over delays in the case, which has seen constant developments, including the chargesheeting of Karti Chidambaram, and the recusal of Justice Indu Malhotra on 20 June. The next hearing in the main criminal case at the special trial court is 4 July 2018.
(This story has been updated to reflect the court proceedings.)
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