Never vetted PILs for NGO as Prashant Bhushan claimed: Fali S Nariman

NEW DELHI: Renowned senior lawyer Fali S Nariman on Thursday repudiated advocate Prashant Bhushan’s claim that the NGO ‘Centre for Public Interest Litigation’ (CPIL) filed PILs after a committee of five eminent persons, including Nariman, scrutinised the genuineness of the complaint and its contents.

Bhushan, a Swaraj Abhiyan member, had said this after a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur questioned how there could be a centre just to file PILs, which operated from the office of an advocate who was known to be a crusader.

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The bench had said Centre for Public Interest Litigation could be misused by vested interests to settle scores with corporate rivals and also for personal vendetta. When the bench asked whether the PILs were scrutinised by eminent members, Bhushan had said the petitions underwent rigorous scrutiny.

However, Nariman on Thursday wrote to Supreme Court secretary general Ravindra Maithani saying, “It is true my name has been on the committee of CPIL almost since inception, but no PIL filed by CPIL has ever been seen by me, much less scrutinised by me.” He requested Maithani to “bring this letter to the notice of the CJI”.

While dealing with a public interest litigation filed by CPIL challenging irregular allotment of 4G spectrum to Reliance Industries Ltd’s Jio, the CJI-headed bench had said on Tuesday, “We must have the confidence that when CPIL files a petition, it is not prompted by someone who has a vested interest even though the cause may appear genuine. If a corporate rival gives documents for filing of a PIL, will you do it? Why would that corporate source not come out in the open and pursue the litigation in its own name? Why should CPIL be a front for settling corporate rivalry or personal vendetta? CPIL should not become a proxy litigant. It should not become an instrument in the hands of commercial players.”