PM owns up Thomas fiasco
Moily does a U-turn on CVC resignation
A day after the Supreme Court dealt a severe blow to the UPA government by striking down the selection of P J Thomas as Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC), Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday accepted responsibility for the controversial appointment.
“There was no coalition compulsion in the issue. I respect the Supreme Court verdict and ensure that such things do not recur,” Singh told mediapersons in Srinagar. The Prime Minister was part of a three-member panel which appointed Thomas as the CVC.
The apex court’s decision has left the post of the country’s corruption watchdog vacant. Though Thomas maintained that he has not resigned, Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily said the office of the CVC can be treated as vacant and that the incumbent need not resign, contradicting his own statement on Thursday that Thomas had resigned.
Informed sources, however, said Thomas need not quit as the Supreme Court has declared his appointment non existent.
BJP’s dig
Taking a dig at the law minister for his statement on Thomas’s purported resignation, BJP spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said: “I don’t know what the honourable law minister wants to say. How can there be a resignation from CVC P J Thomas?If the Supreme Court has quashed the appointment, then the question of him resigning does not arise. There is no need of a notice also. Thomas cannot even enter the office anymore."
Thomas, chosen for the post despite being chargesheeted in a corruption case, is entitled to make a review petition before the Supreme Court.
Lawyers fighting his case confirmed he would do so.
While Thomas’s lawyer Wills Mathews said the judgment is being carefully perused to decide the appeal, the Centre would notify the vacancy of the CVC to set in motion the process to replace Thomas.
The Central Vigilance Commission is a statutory body which, apart from taking up corruption cases, also monitors the Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate. The commission is also in charge of appointing directors of the two agencies.
Thomas was chosen for the post by a three-member panel consisting of Home Minister P Chidambaram and leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the head.
