Times of India: New Delhi: Sunday, 13 July 2014.
The Tamil
Nadu government has moved the Supreme Court seeking to be heard in a petition
challenging the appointment of IPS officer from the state, Archana Ramasundaram,
as the first woman additional director of CBI.
The petition
filed by journalist activist Vineet Narain had led the Supreme Court to stay
her appointment in CBI in May this year. In an application, TN chief secretary
Mohan Verghese Chunkath has urged SC to hear the contention of Ramasundaram's
cadre state, accusing her of "misconduct of deserting her office without
getting orders of the Government of TN".
"The
government of TN has already initiated departmental action by issuing a memo of
charges against her misconduct ... without properly handing over charge of her
post to chairperson/DG police, TN Uniformed Service Recruitment Board, Chennai.
With regard to points raised by the petitioner Vineet Narain, it is proper that
the government of TN be impleaded as necessary party and it would place before
the court position and material available which will enable it to record
appropriate findings," the application says.
TN government
has also cited an appraisal report signed by Ramasundaram on May 19 this year
as CBI additional director despite the SC staying her appointment on May 9.
"It is also submitted that she has also affixed the seal of the office of
additional director, CBI and written the letter on the letterhead of CBI,"
it says, calling it a violation of the court's stay order which restrained her
from functioning in the CBI. "This act of the officer indicates as if she
is functioning as additional director, CBI quite contrary to the orders of the
SC," the TN government argues.
Meanwhile,
defending her selection to the post, Ramasundaram said in her affidavit that
documents furnished to her under the RTI Act reveal she was the senior most in
the list of officers submitted by DOPT to the selection committee. She also
pointed out that there were no adverse remarks against her while other officers
in the panel, including R K Pachnanda, had adverse remarks against them.
"Officer recommended by the selection committee, Pachnanda, had many
adverse remarks against him such as (a) A remark by JD North CBI that he
shouldn't be re-inducted into the CBI in future and (b) his candidature for
induction in SPG failed due to adverse inputs received from a sister agency,"
Ramasundaram said in her reply filed in the court.
Accusing the
selection committee of bias, the woman IPS officer said her candidature was
bypassed without any "ostensible or cogent reasons and the junior most
officer, who had a number of adverse remarks, was recommended twice by the
selection committee to the government".
SC is
scheduled to take up Narain's petition on Monday. Less than 24 hours after the
Centre cleared Ramasundaram's appointment, a three-judge bench had restrained
her from taking over the post in CBI. Narain alleged that the central
government didn't follow rules while selecting her for the key post. He said
the government imposed its chosen officer despite the selection committee not
recommending her name.
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