The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has ruled out for the moment a suo motu enquiry into the actions of State Police Chief (SPC) Loknath Behera. Citing a former Supreme Court order, the VACB informed the Vigilance Court here on Wednesday that the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General could not be used to move against the top police official.
The VACB informed the Vigilance Court on Wednesday that it had received a complaint against the SPC, based on the CAG report, from an individual named Neyyatinkara P Nagaraj. It was also said that the complaint had been forwarded to the State Government.
“It is premature to make an enquiry in which the matter is pending with the government for final decision,” the VACB public prosecutor told the Court. He also pointed out that government sanction was required under section 17-A of the Prevention of Corruption Act to proceed against a senior officer like the State Police Chief.
Further, the VACB said that adverse mention in a CAG report was not a good enough reason to initiate a probe. The public prosecutor quoted a 2014 order of the Supreme Court that upheld the Gujarat High Court's decision to turn down a probe on the basis of a CAG report.
The apex court had then clearly hinted that a CAG report was not final, and that it too would be subjected to another round of scrutiny. “It is important to examine the comments the various ministries (departments) have to offer on the CAG's report. The ministry can always point out if there is any mistake in the CAG's report or if the CAG had inappropriately appreciated the various issues,” the Supreme Court had said in 2014.
The Supreme Court also said that simply because a decision failed did not mean that it was taken with ulterior motives. “It is well settled that non-floating of tenders or absence of public auction or invitation alone is not a sufficient reason to characterise the action of a public authority as either arbitrary or unreasonable or amounted to malafide or improper exercise of power,” the 2014 order had said.
One of the CAG's charges against Loknath Behera was that he had conspired with Keltron, Kerala Police's total solutions provider, to do away with established norms while inviting tenders for the purchase of various security equipments.
The apex court also said it would be counterproductive to keep a government always under the scanner. “If every decision taken by the State is tested by a microscope and a suspicious eye, the administration will come to standstill and the decision makers will lose all their initiative and enthusiasm,” the court said.
The last of the Supreme Court's observations related to the role of the Public Accounts Committee. It said it would not be proper to act on the CAG report when the PAC was seized of the matter. When asked whether action would be taken against the SPC, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan too had said that the CAG report would be scrutinised by the PAC as was usual. The PAC is headed by an opposition member. In Kerala, it is chaired by Congress MLA V D Satheesan.
