Relief for Mulayam, Akhilesh as CBI Says No Proof Against Father-Son in Disproportionate Assets Case

In major relief for Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav and his son Akhilesh, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has given a clean chit to the leaders in a disproportionate assets case.

The agency, in its affidavit filed before the Supreme Court, said the inquiry in the case was closed in August 2013 as no evidence was found against the Yadavs.

The affidavit mentioned that the SC had never directed the CBI to register a regular case and also that no criminality was found. The CBI’s affidavit came on a plea to submit a status report in the court.

Mulayam had earlier said the petition by Congress activist Vishwanath Chaturvedi against him and his family was filed in 2005 and the CBI and the Income Tax Authorities did not find anything adverse.

The Samajwadi Party leader alleged in an affidavit that the Congress activist was trying to rake up an old disproportionate assets case against him and his family to malign their image during the general elections.

Mulayam, who had filed his affidavit in response to the notice issued to him on March 25, said Chaturvedi filed fresh plea for extraneous reasons and with an objective to gain political mileage “just at the time and eve of the 2019 General Elections with mala fide reasons”.

Chaturvedi, in 2005, had filed the PIL in the top court seeking a direction to the CBI to take appropriate action to prosecute Mulayam, Akhilesh and his wife Dimple, and younger son Prateek under the Prevention of Corruption Act for allegedly acquiring assets more than the known source of their income by misusing their power of authority.

The apex court in its verdict of March 1, 2007, had directed the CBI "to enquire into allegations" and find out as to as to whether the plea with regard to disproportionate assets of SP leaders was "correct or not".

In 2012, the court had dismissed the review petitions of Mulayam and his sons against its verdict and directed the CBI to go ahead with the probe against them in the disproportionate assets case. It had allowed the review plea of Dimple and directed the CBI to drop the inquiry against her saying that she was not holding any public office.

The court had also modified its March 1, 2007 order and asked the CBI to file the status report before the court, not the government.

The top court had on March 25, 2019, had also asked the probe agency to file a report within two weeks and said that "there was a status report (of 2007 by CBI) saying that prima facie case is made out. We are entitled to know as to what happened to the investigation".