Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Harin P Raval resigned on Tuesday, but he left behind an explosive letter that could make life difficult for Attorney General (AG) Goolam Vahanvati in the coming days before the Supreme Court.
Intriguingly, the AG wanted the court to believe on Tuesday that he did not see the CBI status report despite attending a meeting called by law Minister Ashwani Kumar to examine it. This contention was strongly refuted by Raval in his letter to the AG.
When contacted, Raval said, “Yes, I stand by what I have stated in my letter to the AG.” His letter of resignation submitted to the law Minister said, “I am resigning as ASG as desired. Please accept this with immediate effect and oblige. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve the Government.”
Raval’s damning letter to Vahanvati pointed out that the AG was present at the meeting with the law Minister when changes were made to the CBI status report in the coal scam. The letter by Raval, who represented CBI in the SC, alleged of being made a “scapegoat” for his statement given to the SC on March 12 that the contents of the CBI report were not shared with the political bosses.
Raval has complicated matters for the AG who admitted in the court on Tuesday that he was present in the meeting with the law Minister but never saw the report. “I agree I was sitting there,” Vahanvati said, appearing for the Centre before a bench headed by Justice RM lodha. “But I have never seen the draft (report),” he added, expressing how pained he was to learn about Raval’s letter.
The AG will find it difficult to explain the court what was he doing in the meeting called to discuss a report, which he allegedly did not see even though he sat there all along.
In his letter, Raval pointed out how Vahanvati did not just see the report, but also settled the changes made by the law Minister. Giving details about the meeting with the law Minister where AG was present along with CBI’s Director and Joint Director among others, Raval revealed, “At the said meeting, during the course of discussions, the draft of only one of status reports of the preliminary enquiries was shown to the law Minister and was perused by him as well as by you. Certain suggestions were made, including by you, to the CBI, some of which were accepted.”
The letter further exposed AG’s defence by stating, “You will recall that as you wanted to leave, to attend Court…other status report of the investigations of the nine regular cases (in the coal block scam) were requested to be shown to you in the evening…In compliance of the above, the CBI officials brought the drafts which were perused and settled by you. Sir, I was present in your residential office.”
Against these facts, Raval wrote, “You (Vahanvati) had deemed it appropriate to take a stand that the contents of the Status Report were not known to you, which fact you knew to be incorrect. On account of your statement, I felt embarrassed and was forced to take a stand in the court, consistent with your submission made as Attorney General for India, that the contents of the Status Report were not known to you and that they were not shared with the Government.” Raval, who is the first ASG to resign before completion of his tenure on July 4, 2014 will be the third law officer to resign in the present UPA II Government.