The CBI filed a charge sheet against its sub-inspector, Abhishek Tiwari, for allegedly compromising the probe against former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh in lieu of an iPhone 12 Pro worth Rs 95,000 by leaking sensitive and confidential information and documents. The charge sheet was filed on Friday (December 17) before the Special Judge of CBI Sanjeev Aggarwal at Rouse Avenue court in Delhi.
Tiwari is accused of leaking the purported Preliminary Enquiry (PE) report of the CBI. The said PE report maintained that no cognizable offence of corruption was made out against Deshmukh as levelled by former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh in the Bombay High Court.
The agency also filed the charge sheet against Deshmukh’s lawyer Anand Dilip Daga who is alleged to have bribed the iPhone to the sub-inspector when he was in Pune during the course of the investigation.
The CBI has narrated how Daga and Tiwari subverted preliminary enquiry against Anil Deshmukh directed by the Bombay High Court. Both are in judicial custody after they were arrested in September.
The CBI said that Daga held a meeting with Tiwari and gave him an iPhone as illegal gratification. The CBI claimed that CBI sub-inspector Tiwari shared documents and details of the investigation to Anil Deshmukh’s lawyer. These include copies of documents like memorandum of proceedings, sealing-unsealing memorandum, statements, seizure memos, and other documents related to the investigation.
The CBI said that Tiwari by accepting the bribe caused improper performance of public duty. The CBI has also attached evidence of the purchase of the iPhone for the alleged gratification and claimed that same was ‘corroborated’ by WhatsApp chats.
CBI said that Tiwari who was entrusted with the possession of case sensitive documents as part of the enquiry and investigation shared these details with Daga through WhatsApp on many occasions.
As the said leaked report giving clean chit to Deshmukh become viral on social media, the CBI investigation too came under question. That leaked report was also sent to several media houses. The CBI denied giving any clean chit to Deshmukh.
The CBI launched an internal inquiry suspecting a ‘larger conspiracy to subvert the investigation’. Investigation revealed attempts were made by the team of Anil Deshmukh to influence the preliminary enquiry and its officer had compromised the probe.
Court denies bail to Tiwari and Daga
The CBI court rejected their bail petition. The court didn’t accept their contention the CBI charge sheet was nothing but a set of loose pages to prevent them from getting the bail. They said that the CBI filed an incomplete charge sheet on 89 days after they were arrested.
