New Delhi: Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant on Tuesday reprimanded a lawyer seeking an urgent listing of a disproportionate assets case against Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, questioning whether the move was intended to generate media attention.
“There is no head, no tail to this mentioning,” the CJI remarked, taking exception to the grounds cited by the lawyer for seeking an early hearing in the matter.
The lawyer sought the listing of the matter, contending that Rahul Gandhi had recently claimed at an event that he was in touch with 200 officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Responding to the submission, CJI Kant asked the lawyer, “Have you spoken to any news channel for this?”
Following the exchange, the CJI orally instructed the court staff to discontinue live streaming of the mentioning proceedings henceforth.
The remarks came in the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s earlier order staying proceedings before the Allahabad High Court in the disproportionate assets case and restraining the CBI and the ED from submitting any report before the High Court.
The case arises from a complaint filed by Karnataka-based BJP worker S. Vignesh Shishir, who alleged that Rahul Gandhi possessed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
In August, the Supreme Court had asked the Allahabad High Court to defer proceedings in the matter and also restrained the central agencies from submitting any report to it.
The top court also said that if any agency has knowledge of any disproportionate assets belonging to any individual, it can proceed on its own, and the same does not require court orders.
The Congress leader had approached the apex court challenging the Allahabad High Court’s directions to the CBI and the ED to verify the allegations. He had also filed a separate transfer petition seeking to shift the proceedings from the Allahabad High Court to the Delhi High Court.
(IANS)
