CBI defends U-turn on Mulayam asset's case

New Delhi, Feb 11 (PTI) A day after being pulled up by
the Supreme Court of India for "acting at the behest" of the
Indian government, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
Wednesday defended itself saying it was bound by rules to
consult the government before going to court even as political
parties questioned the investigating agency's credibility.

CBI Director Ashwini Kumar Wednesday defended the U-turn
of the agency in Mulayam Singh Yadav's disproportionate assets
case saying "That is as per rules and procedures. Whenever we
go to Supreme Court and High Court, we go through the
government of India and through the Ministry of Law."

Ironically, during the tenure of Vijay Shankar, Kumar's
predecessor, the CBI, in its affidavit had said, it was
willing to place the status report directly before the apex
court, instead of submitting the same to the government.

Reacting to the developments, senior Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) leader Murli Manohar Joshi told reporters in
Varanasi Wednesday, "The credibility of the CBI has suffered a
serious setback with the Supreme Court's comment and has
revealed its real character."

"It proves that CBI has become an agency of the Union
Government. It is working at the behest of the Central
Government, which is using it for its political ends," the BJP
leader alleged virtually echoing SP leader Amar Singh's claim
earlier today that the probe agency was being used as a tool
and there was a question mark over its credibility. PTI TEAM