New Delhi: Opposition Lok Sabha leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday raised objections to the process for selecting the next CBI chief, claiming that he had not received self-evaluation reports from the candidates and therefore the government’s selection was “pre-determined”.“As Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi is a member of the three-member committee that appoints the CBI chairman, along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Justice of India Surya Kant.
The congressman shared a screenshot of his dissent letter on his X handle.He accused the government of misusing the CBI to target political opponents, journalists and critics, stressing that the purpose of including opposition leaders in the Election Commission was to prevent such “institutional capture”.Rahul wrote: “Despite multiple written requests, I was not provided with self-evaluation reports or 360-degree reports from qualified candidates. Instead, I expected to inspect the evaluation records of 69 candidates for the first time during the committee meeting. Detailed review of these records is critical to evaluate each candidate’s history and performance. This deliberate denial of information makes a mockery of the selection process and ensures that only candidates pre-determined by you are selected.”He added that he had also recorded his objections at two previous meetings but had yet to receive a reply.“By denying the Election Commission vital information, the government has reduced it to a mere formality. The Leader of the Opposition is not a rubber stamp. I cannot abdicate my responsibility by participating in such a biased exercise,” concluded the former Congress president.The meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s official residence No. 7 Lokayan Marg and lasted for more than an hour.The tenure of current CBI director Praveen Sood will end on May 24. A decision on his successor is expected soon.According to sources, several senior IPS officers from different states are among the list of officials being considered for the top CBI post. It is learned that the list of IPS officers under consideration includes Parag Jain, Shatrujeet Kapoor, Yogesh Gupta, GP Singh and Praveer Ranjan.(with PTI input)
