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New CBI director says it's 'difficult to underplay political interference'

Dr R K Raghavan today took over as director of the Central Bureau of Investigation, stating that he will keep its functioning transparent.

Dr Raghavan, who will head the bureau for a minimum tenure of two years under Supreme Court orders, told reporters after assuming office at the CBI headquarters in New Delhi that ''it is difficult to underplay political interference'' in the investigation of sensitive cases.

He, however, said he was used to handling such situations in Tamil Nadu when he was director general of police (vigilance and anti-corruption).

As part of transparency, Dr Raghavan said, he would himself inform the press of any ''earth-shaking'' development in the bureau which would have nothing to hide. Asked whether any such development was in the offing, he said his statement was only a conjecture.

He said the government had cleared a proposal for creating a website for the CBI and this would be in place in about a month.

The new director said although he had not worked in the CBI earlier, his experience in handling anti-corruption cases for six consecutive years as DGP would keep him in good stead as the bureau also dealt with such cases.

Greater use of computers and other scientific gadgets in the investigation of cases and other functions of the bureau and filling up of vacancies would be his priority, he said.

Asked about the bureau having to function under the Chief Vigilance Commission, he said there were bound to be problems as it was a novel experiment.

He, however, expressed the hope that the bureau would have a ''workable and acceptable'' arrangement with the CVC.

Raghavan, who has succeeded Trinath Mishra, is a 1963 batch IPS officer and has worked in the Intelligence Bureau for 15 years.

UNI

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