BJP opposes transfer of CBI officer probing Adarsh scam

Mumbai - Maharashtra BJP Friday demanded that the union government should "put on hold" the transfer of the CBI joint director who led the probe into the Adarsh Housing Society scam, a party official said.

Rishi Raj Singh, an officer of the 1985 Indian Police Service (IPS) batch from Kerala cadre, was transferred Thursday and replaced by Keshav Kumar, a 1986 batch IPS batch from Gujarat cadre.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) termed the transfer as "inappropriate", especially when probe into the scam was under way.

Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council Vinod Tawde has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P. Chidambaram, urging them that Singh's transfer be stopped, the party spokesperson said.

Singh has been shifted from the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) Anti-Corruption Branch to the CBI's Economic Offences' Wing, a day after the agency filed its charge sheet in the Adarsh scam.

Among others, the charge sheet has named former chief minister Ashok Chavan and senior government officials.

The CBI has maintained that it was a routine transfer, but Tawde has questioned its timing.

In a related development, the BJP demanded that the state government should shift some of its departments and ministerial offices to the Adarsh Society building in Colaba.

After a major fire gutted large parts of Mantralaya, the state secretariat, the government has made alternative arrangements to shift offices from the headquarters to other locations in the vicinity.

Among these are a property in the World Trade Centre at Cuffe Parade and the MTNL building near Churchgate.

The BJP spokesperson contended that the government would be paying a heavy rent of Rs.90 million for the WTC property and it would also be inconvenient for people to travel there for getting their work done.

"Instead, the government can get permission from the concerned authorities and consider shifting some of its offices to the Adarsh building which is lying vacant and would not create additional financial burden on the exchequer," the spokesperson said.