Rakesh Asthana's appointment as CBI special director 'illegal': Prashant Bhushan

Senior advocate and social activist Prashant Bhushan on Monday dubbed the appointment of Rakesh Asthana as the special director in Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as "illegal".

"Rakesh Asthana's name figures in diary of Sterling Biotech, on which CBI itself has registered an FIR..In my view this is totally illegal and we will certainly challenge it," Bhushan told news agency ANI.

On August 30, the CBI's Delhi Unit registered a detailed FIR against three senior Income Tax Commissioners for accepting bribes from the Gujarat-based Sterling Biotech and Sandesara Group of Companies. The FIR says there existed a "Diary 2011" which was found during raids on a company.

According to reports, the diary also contained Asthana's name.

The Central Vigilance Commission's (CVC) Selection Committee on Saturday rejected a proposal for the promotion of the CBI's Additional Director Rakesh Asthana for the post of Special Director.

Asthana is a 1984 batch IPS officer from Gujarat. With the elevation, he has no become the second senior-most officer in the agency after CBI director Alok Verma.

Asthana is currently an additional director in the CBI and is handling several important probes including the AgustaWestland scam and cases related to allegations of corruption in Delhi government among others.

OneIndia News