This is the first time the CBI has stated on court record that no case has been made out against Mulayam and family.
After six years of investigation that saw a series of flip flops, the Central Bureau of Investigation has given a clean chit to Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Yadav and his sons Akhilesh and Prateek in a disproportionate assets case that was initiated in 2007 at the instance of the Supreme Court.
After the court demanded a status of the probe against the trio based on an application by complainant Vishwanath Chaturvedi, the CBI filed an affidavit in court on May 9 stating the preliminary enquiry lodged against the Yadavs on March 5, 2007 was closed on August 7, 2013 for lack of evidence.
This is the first time the CBI has stated on court record that no case has been made out against Mulayam and family. The court had on March 1, 2007 directed a CBI probe on the plea of Chaturvedi, who had given evidence of unaccounted wealth held by the Yadavs.
In its latest affidavit CBI said that after conducting “a fair, impartial and professional” enquiry, it “had independently taken a decision to close the enquiry on August 7, 2013.”
Subsequently, the closure report was submitted to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) on October 8, 2013. The reason CBI cites for closing the case is lack of sufficient evidence to nail the guilt of the three individuals possessing disproportionate assets.
This case has seen several twists and turns. Soon after the March 2007 direction from SC to initiate a preliminary enquiry against Mulayam, Prateek, Akhilesh and his wife Dimple, the CBI moved an application to place the Status Report of its enquiry before the court. It expressed a desire to proceed with the registration of a regular case against the accused. A year later, in March 2008, the CBI moved another application for early consideration of its pending plea. By December 2008, the agency came up with a strange request asking permission from court to withdraw its first application of 2007.
The investigation slackened during this period. Deciding on the review petitions by Yadavs, the apex court on December 13, 2012 asked CBI to proceed with the probe against all except Dimple. After this order, the CBI swung into action, summoned the Yadavs, examined documents and made enquiries but found no material good enough for prosecution.
For a while, there was a lull in the probe which forced Chaturvedi to approach the apex court in February 2019 seeking a status report on the investigation. The court directed the CBI to give its response. On April 12, the CBI stated that the case was closed, but the court ordered the agency to file an affidavit. The court will examine the agency's affidavit in July.
A Long Wait
The CBI had cited lack of sufficient evidence while closing its inquiry in August 2013, and the closure report was submitted to the Central Vigilance Commission in October 2013
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