The Maharashtra government has claimed that although senior IPS officer Rashmi Shukla has not been named as an accused in the alleged phone tapping and leak of sensitive documents case, there is material against her for the probe to be carried out.
The statement was made by senior counsel Darius Khambata, appearing for the Maharashtra government, before the Bombay High Court on Monday.
Khambata said, “This is a serious matter. She (Shukla) has not been named as an accused in the FIR yet. But there is material against her and the investigation should proceed.”
The HC was hearing a petition filed by Shukla seeking quashing of the FIR alleging that she was being made the scapegoat. She has also sought that the probe be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is already probing against Maharashtra’s former home minister Anil Deshmukh.
The senior counsel further said that their preliminary probe revealed that Shukla had prepared three pen drives of the sensitive documents and material, containing phone surveillance on alleged corruption in police transfers and postings.
Of these, two are in possession of the police, however, the third one is missing, said Khambata.
“Two of the pen drives have been tracked and are in the custody of the state government. Our contention is that the third pen drive was handed over to the Union Home Ministry by the Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra,” said Khambata.
He said that police had requested the leader of opposition, Devendra Fadnavis and the Union home ministry to share the pen drive. However, the police have not received any response till date.
Khambata said that they need the third pen drive to corroborate the contents with the other pen drives.
“We need to verify if the contents of the three pen drives are the same. If they are then it will become apparent where the leak was from. We are only probing the issue of leak of sensitive documents and are not concerned with the contents of the same,” he said.
The police have filed an application before a metropolitan magistrate seeking that the third pen drive be handed over to the police for further probe.
Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, appearing for the CBI, told the court that the central agency was willing to probe the case.
Opposing the stand, Khambata said that Shukla has said in her petition that the surveillance was carried out at the instance of Subodh Jaiswal, who was then the Director General of Police of Maharashtra. Now Jaiswal is the CBI Director.
The HC has kept Shukla’s petition for further hearing on October 28.
