Future remains tense for the new Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Shashi Kant Sharma as the Supreme Court is all set to hear in July a petition challenging his appointment.
On a day when he was sworn-in by President Pranab Mukherjee, a vacation bench of Justices BS Chauhan and Dipak Misra of the apex court took up a PIl where Sharma’s credentials to assume the top auditor’s post was under challenge.
The PIl filed by advocate Ml Sharma also demanded guidelines for appointment of CAG, which till date remained an arbitrary and non-transparent exercise conducted within the Government circles.
The apex court found no urgency to deal with the issue at hand and directed the petition to come up in July when the Court reopenes after vacation.
Sharma’s appointment has not found favour with the Opposition which has cited conflict of interest as its main ground of protest.
During his 10-year stint with the Defence Ministry which culminated in his two-year tenure as Defence Secretary, several scams and irregularities in purchase of defence equipments are under CAG scanner while some such as Augusta Westland
helicopter purchase deal is even being probed by CBI for alleged irregularities.
“Government action is mala fide, arbitrary and under concocted scheme to justify their financial manipulation and scheme which are pending before the CAG for auditing,” the petition said.
Besides, the PIl raised a larger issue of non-transparency in appointment of CAG that ran contrary to the power vested to him under the Constitution.
Being an authority who enjoys position parallel to a Supreme Court judge in matters of removal procedure, PIl objected to the present system under which secrecy shrouds the selection and appointment of CAG. He further demanded quashing of Sharma’s appointment.
The PIl also leveled a personal attack on Sharma’s capability to handle the CAG post which requires a working knowledge of commerce, accounts and audit. In the case of SK Sharma, who is a political science graduate, has never had a stint with commerce or accounts wings of the Government.