Power to transfer of investigation to CBI should be exercised only in exceptional circumstances; Supreme Court to High Courts

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has directed the high courts not to transfer cases to the CBI for investigation citing vague allegations, including the incompetence of the local police. A bench comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and K. Vinod Chandran observed that the CBI should be considered only in exceptional circumstances.

The Supreme Court's intervention was to set aside the Punjab and Haryana High Court's order to transfer the case to the CBI on a plea that the local police investigation was inadequate. The Supreme Court opined that the trend of blindly transferring the case to the CBI is not right. The court should use its extraordinary power to order a CBI investigation in exceptional circumstances with caution and moderation.

The petitioner approached the High Court alleging collusion between the accused and the Haryana Police in a case where the accused impersonated an IB officer and embezzled Rs 1.49 crore.

The Supreme Court criticized the transfer of the case to the CBI based on the accused's acquaintance with the police. The case is being investigated by a special investigation team under the Assistant Commissioner of Police. The complainant has not proven that the local police are incompetent or biased. Therefore, a CBI investigation should not have been ordered, the verdict said.

To be handed over to CBI...

The court explained the circumstances under which a case should be handed over to the CBI. Extraordinary circumstances where credibility and confidence in the investigations need to be ensured, if the case has national or international dimensions, and in situations where full justice and fundamental rights need to be implemented. The case can be handed over to the CBI only if there is a circumstance like this. An agency like the CBI should not be brought into the case without a definite reason.