Narendra Modi-led panel meets to decide next CBI chief; CJI Ranjan Gogoi, Mallikarjun Kharge part of committee

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led committee on Thursday met in Delhi to decide the name of the next CBI chief, the post lying vacant following the unceremonious exit of Alok Verma early in January, officials said. The meeting was being attended by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, they said. [caption id=“attachment_5440251” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. AFP[/caption] The panel had on January 10 removed Verma, who was engaged in a bitter fight with Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana over corruption charges. Both Verma and Asthana have accused each other of impropriety. Verma, after being removed from the post of CBI director, was named as the Director General of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards – a less significant portfolio. Verma did not accept the offer and wrote to the government, saying he should be considered as deemed superannuated as he has completed 60 year age of superannuation. He had taken over as the CBI chief on 1 February, 2017 for a fixed two-year tenure. In a letter to Secretary of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), C Chandramouli, Verma said he has superannuated on 31 July, 2017. The Centre has not yet made public its decision on Verma’s letter. The Centre has appointed M Nageshwara Rao as the interim CBI chief. Verma’s resignation letter led to a political slugfest with the opposition parties, mainly the Congress, accusing the central government of alleged interference in public institutions. Kharge had recently written to the prime minister terming Rao’s appointment as CBI’s interim chief “illegal”. He had asked the government to immediately convene the meeting of the panel to decide on the new CBI chief.