Government will soon move bill on CBI autonomy issue, says Kapil Sibal

In the light of the Supreme Court leaving it to Parliament to debate changes in the law governing the CBI to make the agency autonomous, government on Wednesday said it will soon move a bill in this regard. "We have discussed the matter in the Cabinet already. The Cabinet has cleared the proposal that we had made for the amendments to the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946. Now the time has come for us to move a bill," Law Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters in Delhi.

He said the bill will be drafted on the basis of the affidavit cleared by the Cabinet. He said while the government will bring the bill as soon as possible, the processes of Parliament will decide where the matter will go. "It is the proposal of the government, but it is ultimately Parliament which will enact the law," he said, adding that the bill will be moved after the apex court decides on the affidavit.

"That's the commitment to the court that we will amend the law. We must honour the commitment," he said. Responding to questions on attack by BJP leader Arun Jaitley on the government affidavit on CBI's autonomy, he said the issue is "not about vindication of A or B or what Mr Jaitley said and what I said. Ultimately, we as a democracy, have to enact a law, to make system more transparent. We have to take steps to do that. I don't want to comment on what Mr Jaitley said."

Listing the measures to insulate CBI from external pressures, government had told the Supreme Court that the agency director will be appointed on the recommendation of a three member-panel headed by the Prime Minister and including the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India or a nominated judge - for a period of "not less than two years".

The government, in its affidavit, had said the CBI director shall not be transferred without the consent of the selection committee. It had also proposed that only the President would have the authority to remove or suspend the director, on a reference by the Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) of his "misbehaviour or incapacity".