Date:10/02/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/02/10/stories/2007021018511300.htm

National

Court order against Mayawati will be followed: CBI

Vinay Kumar

On the Rs. 175-crore Taj Corridor case against the BSP chief

Chargesheet against Mayawati will be filed soon: Vijay Shanker

Some gaps in disproportionate assets case against her, he says

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director Vijay Shanker said on Friday that the agency would follow the Supreme Court directive in the Rs. 175-crore Taj Corridor case in "letter and spirit'' against Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati.

Answering queries of the newspersons during an informal interaction here, the CBI chief maintained that the agency was fully aware of the directions of the Supreme Court in the Taj Corridor case and reiterated that its directions "will be implemented in letter and spirit.''

Asked why the CBI had taken more than three months to implement the Supreme Court direction to file a chargesheet against Ms. Mayawati in the Taj Corridor case before a competent court, Mr. Shanker said: "We will be doing it soon.''

While quashing the CBI's closure report in the case, the Supreme Court had on November 27 last year took strong exception to the fact that the CBI Director preferred to refer the matter to Attorney General Milon K. Banerji for his opinion despite the entire investigating team favouring prosecution of the BSP supremo.

Mr. Shanker said there were some gaps that needed to be filled in another case against Ms. Mayawati for possessing assets disproportionate to her known sources of income, and the CBI had questioned her in that case last year. Ms. Mayawati had submitted some documents in her support which were being examined, he said.

In reply to another query involving former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi in the cash-for-MLAs case, Mr. Shanker said the investigating agency was yet to take a decision on the issue.