Central Bureau of Investigation

CBI, or the Central bureau of investigation, is India’s premier investigation police agency. It functions under the administration of the Department Of Personnel, Ministry Of Personnel, Pension and Public Grievances, Government of India, while assisting the Central Vigilance Commission and Lokpal. Its superintendence lies with the Central Vigilance Commission investigating offenses under the Prevention Of Corruption Act. Established on 1st April 1963, CBI gets its power from the Special Police Force. CBI coordinates investigations on behalf of Interpol member countries. CBI, being a specialized agency, primarily investigates crimes that relate to corruption by public officials and economic offenses like fraud and scandals. It protects national security by acting as a watchdog of the nation. CBI’s headquarters are located in New Delhi. Rishi Kumar Shukla is the current director of CBI.

History of CBI

During World War 2, offenses relating to bribery and corruption rose. The law enforcement agencies present at the time or the police were not enough to deal with all the situations. The British Indian Government realized they needed a new agency to deal with these evil offenses. The British Indian Government, thus, created the Special Police establishment in 1941 to investigate bribery and corruption cases. The special police force was established by ordnance of the Government in 1943. However, the ordinance lapsed on 30th September 1946. The Delhi Special Police Establishment Act 1946 was passed to replace it. The Government needed a central police agency to handle the increasing cases of corruption and other malpractices and fraudulent crimes committed by professional criminals. The Government of India drafted a resolution and set up The Central bureau of investigation on 1st April 1963. Later CBI also started investigating conventional crimes like hijackings, kidnappings, assassinations, crimes committed by extremists, etc. 

Organization and Composition of CBI

CBI used to have six divisions, including-

1. 1 Investigation and Anti-Corruption Division
2. 2 Technical Division 
3. 3 Crime Records And Statistics Division 
4. 4 Research Division 
5. 5 Legal And General Division 
6. 6 Administration Division

The existing legal division was later reconstituted in July 2001. At present, there are seven divisions of CBI.

1. 1 Anti-corruption division 
2. 2 Economic Offences Division 
3. 3 Special Crimes Division 
4. 4 Directorate Of Prosecution 
5. 5 Administration Division 
6. 6 Policy And Coordination 
7. 7 Central Forensic Science Laboratory.

The CBI, in total, has about 5000 staff members, 250 law officers, and 125 forensic scientists. It comprises superintendents of police, deputy inspector generals, joint directors, and all other ranks of police personnel. In addition, a Special Director assists a Director in heading the CBI. 

Functions of CBI

Acting as the National Central Bureau of Interpol in India, CBI investigates significant crimes around the country. The functions of CBI are as follows:-

1. Investigation of cases related to the misbehavior of Central government officials and corruption scams– Any misconduct of a Central government official that leads to crime is investigated by the CBI. Similarly, the CBI analyzes any high-profile case related to corruption.
2.  Investigation of crimes that have National and international consequences- Crimes like terrorism and human trafficking cause global or national ramifications. Thus these crimes commander the vigil of the CBI.
3. Expanding criminal information and maintaining statistics on crime etc.- One of the CBI’s most critical functions is keeping a record of criminals and crimes.

Provision of prior information

If an offense is committed by officers of the rank of joint secretary and higher rank officers in the central Government, prior approval of the Central Government is required before CBI can conduct an investigation. However, on 6th May 2014, the supreme court held this provision invalid under the Prevention Of Corruption Act. 

How is the Director of CBI appointed?

The appointment of the CBI Director was made based on the DSPE act, 1946, until 2014. The supreme court, in 2003, recommended that the DSPE act be revised in the Vineet Narayan case. Under the Lokpal act 2014, a committee appoints the CBI director. The Prime Minister heads the committee. At the same time, other members are the Opposition leader, the Chief Justice Of India, or a Supreme Court Judge. Home ministry sense list of eligible candidates to the DOPT. The DOPT then prepares the final list and sends it to the committee. The president promoted two ordinances that allowed the center to extend the CBI’s directors’ tenure in 2021. 

The Conviction Rate of CBI

Although the CBI boosts an overall conviction rate of 69.2%, 65.1%, and 66.8% in 2014, 2015, and 2016 respectively, studies show that the conviction rate for corruption cases stands at a tiny 3%. Moreover, Jitendra Singh admitted in writing to the Lok Sabha in December 2017 that the 3260 people booked by the CBI for various corruption cases in the past four years had been acquitted.

Controversies about CBI

The CBI is supposed to be impartial and has excellent investigating skills. However, despite this, the CBI has been called partial and considered not very efficient regarding politicians and high-ranked officers. Here are some controversies that hit the CBI in the past few years:-

1. The allegation against the special director and director of CBI – Because of his links with controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi, the former CBI director P. Singh was accused of corruption and bribery. Rakesh Asthana, the former special director, was also charged with corruption in 2017.
2. Bansal family suicide case- The former director general of foreign affairs, BK Bansal, and his family accused some CBI officials of threatening them in their suicide letters.
3. Ranjeet Sinha’s case- Ranjeet Sinha, the den CBI chief, was accused of being involved in a corruption case. The supreme court asked CBI special director ML Sharma to investigate the issue. Still, the investigation against Sinha is yet to be completed.

Central Vigilance Committee to oversee the Central Bureau of Investigation

To ensure the efficient functioning of the CBI, the central Vigilance committee shall overseas functioning. The Government will also be responsible for overseeing the CBI while being respectful of its mechanism to ensure impartial working. The CBI needs to inform and report to the CVC on matters related to its investigation. The CVC must know what kinds of cases are being taken by the CBI for investigation. The central Government must ensure that the CBI functions effectively and efficiently. Therefore, a separate section on CBI’s functioning must be in CVC’s annual report.

Conclusion

The Central Bureau of Investigation only deals with cases related to national security matters. Even though it is an Elite force of the nation, it still needs to undergo structural reforms. The most important reason behind this is its way of dealing with politically sensitive issues. CBI needs to have a financial economy to regain the public’s confidence. Therefore, as provided to the comptroller and auditor General and Election Commission of India, it too should have statutory status through legislation.

FAQ

Q1. What crimes can CBI investigate?

 Ans. CBI investigates high-profile cases related to fraud, corruption, misbehavior by government officials, and scams.

Q2. Can I directly complain to CBI?

Ans. Through CBI’S online portal, anyone can lodge complaints and also reports cyber crimes.

Q3. Can the CVC investigate a case against anybody?       

Ans. According to the CVC Act 2003, the commission can cause an inquiry against only specific categories of public servants.

Q4. Who controls the CVC?

Ans. The CVC, or Central Vigilance Commission, is an autonomous body. The Central Vigilance Commissioner heads it.