Introduction: Cong opposed former- CBI chief's NHRC posting, now Govt defends move before the Supreme Court
Barely five months ago, Congress leaders alleged that the Vajpayee Government made former CBI director P C Sharma a member of the National Human Rights Commission as a reward for dropping conspiracy charges against L K Advani in the Ayodhya case. The party would he eating its words now.
For, the Manmohan Singh Government has defended Sharma's appointment before the Supreme Court.
Responding to a PIL, Solicitor General Goolam E Vahanvati asserted that Sharma's appointment was based on the recommendation made "unanimously" on February 19 by the prescribed selection committee which included the then leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Sonia Gandhi, and her counterpart in the Rajya Sabha, Manmohan Singh.
Vahanvati's oral statement, ironically, differs from the affidavit filed by the Vajpayee Government which was non-committal on whether Sonia had been consulted on the first-ever appointment of a police officer as a member of the NHRC.
If anything, the NDA's affidavit suggested that the selection committee constituted after the dissolution of the 13th Lok Sabha on February 5 did not include Sonia.
"It is denied that (Sharma's appointment) is vitiated by vacancy in the committee in the absence of the leader of the Opposition in the House of People," the affidavit had said.
Significantly, the Vajpayee
Government went on to refer to Section 4(2) of the NHRC. Act which
it said "provides that no appointment of a chairperson or a member
of the commission shall he invalid merely by reason of any vacancy
in the committee."