Bhushan objects to Choudhary's name for CVC

With former chairman of CBDT, K V Chowdary, tipped to become Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC), anti-corruption activist Prashant Bhushan on Tuesday raised objection about the choice, saying he has already warned the government against his possible appointment.

Bhushan said in a statement that he has learnt that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge met on Monday and recommended the name of Chowdary as CVC.

He said he had on May 20 wrote a letter to Modi, Singh and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley asking them to publicly disclose the names of the shorlisted persons and asking them not to appoint Chowdary, “giving specific reasons why is he not fit for this important position.”

The CVC, in the absence of the Lokpal, is considered the apex integrity and watchdog institution of the country, he said.

“The selection of such persons in secrecy and without any transparency by a committee shows that there is indeed a bipartisan consensus on corruption and that both the Congress and BJP want persons of doubtful integrity, who will be weak and pliable and who have shown a willingness to protect powerful persons, to man such watchdog institutions. The time has come for citizens to re-launch the anti-corruption movement,” he said.

Bhushan claimed that Chowdary’s name figured four times in the list of persons who visited former CBI Director Ranjit Sinha at his official residence.

He said the Supreme Court on May 14 had said Sinha’s meetings and the impact of those meetings on cases being dealt by the CBI, needs to be investigated. “During the tenure of former CBI Director Sinha, Chowdary’s role was investigated by the CBI in stock guru scam.

“Serious adverse remarks have been made in Chowdary’s performance appraisal reports by three senior officers of CBDT,” Bhushan claimed besides making other allegations against him. Chowdary could not be contacted for his comments.