Was the decision to handover Chhota Rajan's cases to CBI correct?

The decision to handover all the cases registered against Chhota Rajan by the Mumbai police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has not gone down too well in certain quarters. There are many in the Mumbai police who feel that they have been let down and cases which they have painstakingly built have been transferred to the CBI.

While there could be many reasons behind the decision to transfer the cases, one must remember that Rajan is a transnational criminal and with cases against him having both international and state-wide ramifications it was only fair for the CBI to probe the cases.

OneIndia speaks with two former officials of the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) to asses this decision. Former Chief of the Research and Analysis Wing, C D Sahay feels that decision should not be treated as a vote of no-confidence against the Mumbai police.

On the other hand, former officer of the R&AW, V Balachandran says that while in principle he agrees that such cases should be probed by a central agency, in this case however it should have been dealt by the Mumbai police as the cases were long registered by them.

Was the decision to hand over the cases to the CBI right?

Sahay: This is a decision of the government. It is entirely up to the government to decide on who shall handle the cases. Moreover one must remember it was the Maharashtra government that gave the consent to transfer all the 69 cases to the CBI.

Balachandran: I feel we are messing up the cases against Rajan. These are decisions taken in New Delhi. If one may recall, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadavis had asserted that Rajan would be brought down to Mumbai.

Were cases handed over to CBI because Rajan is a transnational criminal?

Sahay: Yes that aspect is there. As per the UN convention, which is India is part of, a transnational criminal shall be probed by the CBI. In such cases, there is a need for coordination. The CBI will have to coordinate with the Enforcement Directorate and the Economic Intelligence Wing which are headquartered in New Delhi. It will also be a composite effort between the CBI and the Bombay

Balachandran: To me this does not apply. This was not an extradition where the convention comes into play. This was a deportation and hence the international convention does not apply here.

Does Rajan have fresh information on Dawood?

Sahay: That is to be seen, It is a big catch and it is being said that the ultimate agenda is to pursue Dawood Ibrahim. Whatever happens it has to be operationalised from Delhi.

Balachandran: I do not think he has any fresh information on Dawood. He was in fact running away from Dawood. The arrest was purely accidental.

Has Rajan been protected in New Delhi as he is termed as a friendly don?

Sahay: Intelligence and criminal investigations are two different issues. Trust me investigations are not based on whether a don is friendly or not. It is based on facts.

Balachandran: It is more important that the investigations progress in the right direction. Whether he was friendly or not is not the point here. The idea is to have the cases investigated and concluded in the form of a trial.