Delhi government to move High Court to restrain LG-appointee ACB chief MK Meena

NEW DELHI: Delhi Government today decided to move the High Court seeking direction to restrain Lt Governor's appointee Anti Corruption Branch chief MK Meena from allegedly trying to hamper the functioning of the anti- graft body.

Delhi government decided to file a fresh application in the ongoing litigation challenging the Centre's notification giving Lt Governor Najeeb Jung absolute powers to appoint bureaucrats in the national capital, after AAP government- nominated Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) chief S S Yadav accused Meena of threatening and pressuring him.

The face-off between the Lt Governor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has resulted in the Delhi government's ACB now having two chiefs.

In its application which is likely to be filed soon, the city government is learnt to be seeking the court's direction to implead Meena as party in the plea, which has challenged a May 21 notification and the July 23, 2014 notification limiting the ACB's jurisdiction to Delhi government officials only and not the city police which is under the Centre.

The government is likely to say that Meena should not be allowed to function till the time the main petition is decided.

An advocate associated with the Delhi government said that Yadav has sent complaints about Meena's alleged high- handed behaviour towards Delhi government's Vigilance Department, which falls under Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

Sisodia has forwarded all the complaints to the Lt Governor and Delhi Police Commissioner Bhim Sain Bassi, the advocate said.

He further said that the government has decided to move the court after Meena on June 24 went to Yadav's office and asked for the FIRs filed with the ACB pertaining to Delhi Police officials.

Meena was not authorised to ask for the FIRs, the plea is understood to have said.

The lawyer said Meena wanted to take the FIR book out of ACB headquarters, which is not allowed. Secondly, he is not even authorised to do it. ACB reports to the Directorate of Vigilance and not to him, the advocate said.

It all began on June 8, when Joint Commissioner Meena, a 1989-batch Indian Police Service officer, took charge of ACB after he was appointed by LG, superseding Additional Commissioner S S Yadav. Yadav had been hand-picked by Delhi government for the post.