indo-asian news service
Bhubaneswar, Sept 22: The Orissa High Court Friday issued a show-cause notice to the CBI and the central and state governments, days after a CBI team wrongly showed up at the house of a sitting judge post midnight while looking for a retired judge in connection with a graft case.
Admitting a Public Interest Litigation plea filed by the Orissa high court bar association, the court asked the CBI to inform it as to who gave its officials permission to visit the residence of Justice C.R. Dash.
“The high court has issued notice to the CBI, the Centre and the state governments over the trespassing of the investigating agency into the official residence of a sitting judge,” Ashok Parija, president of the bar association, said. “The next hearing of the case has been posted for October 16.”
CBI officials had in the early hours of Wednesday tried to trespass into the official residence of Justice Dash in Cuttack while conducting searches in connection with a corruption case involving retired high court judge IM Quddusi.
The agency was reportedly relying on an outdated address book. The incident snowballed into a huge controversy after the bar association Wednesday went on a strike demanding action against the erring officials. The lawyers demanded a high-level judicial probe into the incident. They have also put the cease-work stir they had started on hold till October 19.
“We have put the cease work agitation on hold. The future course of action will be decided on October 19,” Parija said.
Meanwhile, the Commissionerate Police has registered a case at the Cantonment Police Station in Cuttack against the CBI officials on the report of the security personnel who were on duty at the residence. The CBI has refuted the allegations.
