New Delhi: In a big relief for BSP supremo Mayawati, the Supreme Court on Friday quashed the FIR filed against her by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the disproportionate assets case.
The apex court said that the method adopted by the CBI was "unwarranted" and the agency proceeded against her without properly understanding its orders passed in the Taj Corridor scam.
A bench headed by Justice P Sathasivam clarified that the Supreme Court order pertained to initiating probe against state government officials in the scam and there was no such direction to lodge another FIR exclusively against Mayawati for allegedly amassing assets disproportionate to her known sources of income.
Pulling up the premier investigating agency, the apex court said, “The CBI should not have lodged DA case against Mayawati as there was no direction regarding it from this court.”
The court further said that the CBI proceeded against Mayawati without properly understanding its order, “Anything beyond Taj Corridor scam was not subject matter of this court.”
The court pointed out that it had not issued any direction to
probe alleged disproportionate assets of Mayawati between1995-2003.
“There is no finding and no material report pertaining to
DA case against Mayawati,” the court said in its verdict which will have far reaching political consequences.
The CBI had earlier claimed that it has "ample evidence" to show that Mayawati had amassed wealth disproportionate to her known sources of income. However, she had dismissed the allegation by claiming that she had only received the money as donations from party workers.
Mayawati had filed a petition in May 2008 seeking quashing of the criminal proceedings against her in the DA case, lodged by the CBI over eight years ago. She had alleged it was an act of political vendetta against her.
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister had accused the CBI of "fixing" the DA case against her, a charge refuted by the agency.
Mayawati had said the bench should direct the CBI to consider the aspect of order passed by the Income Tax Tribunal holding that her income was genuine and the order had also been upheld by the Delhi High Court.
Questioning Mayawati's assets, the CBI had said her declared assets of Rs one crore in 2003 had gone up to Rs 50 crore in 2007.
The CBI, in its last affidavit filed on September 13, 2011, had alleged there was a "criminal nexus" between Mayawati and her relatives and the disproportionate assets case against her cannot be closed on the basis of conclusions arrived at by the Income Tax Department.
The agency had rejected Mayawati's stand that the DA case should come to an end after the income tax authorities accepted her income tax assessments.
With PTI inputs
First Published: Friday, July 06, 2012, 08:43