Central Bureau of Investigation

Indian federal law enforcement agency

The Central Bureau of Investigation (known by it's acronym, CBI) is the investigating agency of India.[1][2] It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. It was originally set up in 1965 to investigate bribery and governmental corruption. It also receives expanded jurisdiction to investigate breaches of central laws enforceable by the Government of India, multi-state organised crime, or international cases.[3]

Logo of Central Bureau of Investigation

The agency has been known to investigate several economic crimes, special crimes, cases of corruption and other cases.[2] CBI is India's officially designated single point of contact for liaison with the Interpol.[4]

The headquarters of CBI is located in CGO Complex, near Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi, India.

Organisation change

The CBI is headed by a director. The director must be an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer with a rank of Director General of Police. [5] Other ranks in the CBI which may be staffed by the IRS (Indian Revenue Service) officer and the IPS are:-

  1. Special Director,
  2. Additional Director,
  3. Joint Director,
  4. Deputy Inspector General of Police,
  5. Senior Superintendent of Police,
  6. Superintendent of Police,
  7. Additional Superintendent of Police,
  8. Deputy Superintendent of Police.

Inspector, Sub-Inspector, Assistant Sub-Inspector, Head constable, Constable are non-gazetted officers. They are recruited through SSC or through deputation from Police, Income Tax Department and Customs Department.

Criticism change

Corruption change

In 2013, Judge of the Supreme Court of India (and later Chief Justice of India) R. M. Lodha criticized the CBI for being a "caged parrot speaking in its master's voice". This is due to its too much political interference ignoring of which party comes to be in power.[6][7]

Because of the CBI's political overtones,[8] it has been exposed by former officials such as Joginder Singh and B. R. Lall (director and joint director, respectively) as engaging in nepotism, wrongful prosecution and corruption. In Lall's book, Who Owns CBI, he details how investigations are manipulated and derailed.[9] Corruption within the organisation[10][11] has been revealed in information obtained under the RTI Act,[12] and RTI activist Krishnanand Tripathi has alleged harassment from the CBI to save itself from exposure via RTI.[13] The states that have withdrawn consent to the CBI have accused the CBI of being a tool used by the Union Government to unfairly target parties ideologically rival to them.

Political interference change

Generally, cases assigned to the CBI are sensitive and of national importance. It is standard practice for state police departments to register cases under its jurisdiction. If necessary, the central government may transfer a case to the CBI. The agency has been criticised for its mishandling of several scams.[14][15][16] It has also been criticized for dragging its feet investigating prominent politicians, like P. V. Narasimha Rao, Jayalalithaa, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Mayawati, Mulayam Singh Yadav and many more.

Sources change

  1. "Official website of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)". cbi.gov.in.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "CBI & its Roles". Central Bureau of Investigation India. n.d. Archived from the original on 2020-01-17.
  3. "A Brief History of CBI". Central Bureau of Investigation, Government of India. Archived from the original on 18 August 2019.
  4. "Interpol to hold general assembly in India in 2022". The Economic Times India. 2019-10-18.
  5. Deeptiman Tiwary (2021-11-15). "Centre brings Ordinances to extend tenure of ED, CBI directors up to 5 years". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2021-11-15.
  6. Ross Colvin and Satarupa Bhattacharjya (10 May 2013). "A "caged parrot" - Supreme Court describes CBI". Reuters. Archived from the original on 20 December 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2013.
  7. "CBI a 'caged parrot', 'heart' of Coalgate report changed: Supreme Court". Times of India. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  8. Venky Vembu (21 March 2013). "CBI's on-off raids: How 'Congress Bureau of Investigation' works". firstpost.com. Retrieved 2013-04-26.
  9. Mohan, Vishwa (27 November 2006). "Origin of Hawala funds were not traced". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012.
  10. "CBI Arrests Own Cop in Bribery Case". The Outlook India. 17 September 2012. Archived from the original on 2 May 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
  11. "Adarsh Scam: CBI Arrests Own Lawyer, Ex-Cong MLC". 6 March 2012. Archived from the original on 2 May 2013. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  12. Saikat Datta (21 September 2009). "Grease on the Lens". outlookindia.com. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
  13. Anshuman G Dutta (4 June 2011). "CBI is harassing me". mid-day.com. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  14. "CBI has long history of listening to its political master's voice". The Sunday Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  15. "Restoring Public Confidence in CBI". outlook india. 30 December 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  16. "The Congress Bureau of Investigation: Big stick politics. Will it ever end?". Open The Magazine. 6 April 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2013.


Other websites change