The CBI's request before the designated court of judge Rekha Dikshit came since Governor TV Rajeshwar is yet to give his sanction.
LUCKNOW: The hearing in the Rs 175 crore Taj Corridor case, allegedly involving Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, was deferred till May 23 even as the CBI did not file the Governor's sanction for her prosecution.
Designated Court judge Rekha Dikshit fixed the new date for hearing the case after one of the accused, a senior official, questioned the competence of the court to direct the CBI to file the sanction for prosecution of the public servants--Mayawati and five other officials--accused in the case.
The CBI, which was directed by the court in February to produce the Governor's sanction of the public servants accused in the case, did not file the report on the sanction.
The agency sought time to reply to former Environment Principal Secretary R K Sharma's intervention application in which he had questioned the court's competency to seek sanction for prosecution against public servants.
Sharma's counsel Nandit Shrivastav challenged the Feb 15 order of the designated court saying it could not issue such an order. He also wanted to be heard on the matter now.
CBI counsel R K Tiwari pleaded that the agency required time to file its reply on Sharma's application. But he maintained that Sharma had no locus standi at this moment in the matter.
Srivastava maintained that the Supreme Court had directed the CBI to only place all materials collected during its investigation and the report of the Superintendent of Police before the designated court.
It was left to the designated court to decide whether to take cognisance of the matter or not, Srivastava said.
The designated court had on February 15 given the CBI time till Tuesday for filing the sanction for prosecution before it could decide whether to take cognisance of the investigation report submitted to it.
"They (CBI) have not filed the material collected during the investigation...They have filed the SP's report in a sealed cover," Sharma's counsel said.
Contesting Srivastava's plea, the CBI counsel said all the material collected during the investigation had been submitted to the court.
Two days before the counting of votes in the assembly elections, outgoing chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav had sent the CBI's request for sanction to prosecute Mayawati to the Governor.
On the Supreme Court's directions, the CBI had submitted all the material and documents, including the investigation report.
CBI had also sought permission for prosecution of former environment minister Nassemuddin Siddiqi, BSP state secretary, Sharma, under secretary Rajendra Prasad and NBCC's Additional General Manager Mahendra Sharma.
The issue of filing of sanction did not come up before the court nor did the court make any mention of it during the hearing on Tuesday.
CBI sources said the agency has not obtained sanction for prosecuting Mayawati and five others in the case.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}