Protect the identity of the complainant and adhere to the deadline for the investigation, CBI chief tells officers
To ensure that the preliminary investigation is completed promptly, CBI Director Subodh Kumar Jaiswal instructed the agency’s investigation officers (IOs) to protect the identity of the complainant and avoid direct contact with him or her; to ignore requests for withdrawal of the complainant, and to focus on the allegations rather than peripheral issues. According to a report, Director Jaiswal gave the agency’s investigation officers (IOs) the following instructions regarding handling matters received from the Lokpal.
It was established under Section 3 of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 and has been operational since March 2019, when its chairperson was appointed and eight members were appointed.
The government issued a format for filing corruption complaints against public servants with the Lokpal in March 2020.
During the preliminary investigation, the CBI Director issued the following instructions, asking officials to protect the complainant’s identity. In the ordinary course, the complainant may not be directly contacted or examined by the Lokpal because the Lokpal emphasised that the complainant’s identity must be protected. The IO should submit a proposal justifying the reasons for collecting some important documents or some information, in such a situation, to the policy division to take up the matter further with the Lokpal office, sources stated. In such a situation, the IO will need to contact the complainant in order to collect the important documents or some information.
According to sources, the agency was also instructed not to accept any requests from the complainant to withdraw the complaint during the preliminary investigation. During the preliminary investigation, the IOs are instructed to investigate all the allegations made by the complainant in the complaint, pay close attention to the allegations, and not focus on the peripheral issues.
The CBI officials have also been instructed to conduct the preliminary investigation as promptly as possible and conclude it within the deadline set by the Lokpal.
