Representative photo NEW DELHI: Supreme Court Thursday stayed a Jharkhand HC order directing CBI probe into an alleged recruitment scam in state assembly during tenures of various Speakers since 2003 & admitted a plea by Vidhan Sabha secretariat questioning legality of HC order. A bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan admitted the appeal of Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha and stayed HC’s Sept 23 order directing CBI probe into decades-old recruitment of assembly staffers after a brief argument from senior advocate Kapil Sibal. Appearing for petitioner S S Sharma, advocate Ardhendumouli Prasad told SC that HC bench had no option but to order CBI probe because of consistent non-cooperation from assembly secretariat to throw light on the scam and complete inaction on the fact-finding report on recruitment scam sent to the assembly in 2018 by then governor Droupadi Murmu , now the President of India.
The petitioner claimed before HC that as many as 274 staffers were recruited during the tenure of Speaker Namdhari Singh, of which 70% allegedly belonged to one district. Similarly, during the tenure of Speaker Alamgir Alam, 324 more were allegedly recruited irregularly while it was alleged that arbitrary promotions were given to many during the tenure of Speaker S S Bhokta. In its appeal, assembly secretariat said, “HC erred in directing CBI to inquire into irregularity of appointments and promotions made in Vidhan Sabha, in absence of criminality or cognisable offence, that too.