Amidst the controversy in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) between Director Alok Verma and Special Director Rakesh Asthana – who have both been asked to go on leave now – a video featuring Asthana when he was police commissioner of Surat, in Gujarat, has surfaced.
The video – shot in Bollywood style while introducing Asthana – compares him with visionaries such as Sardar Patel, Swami Vivekananda and Subhas Chandra Bose among others.
Asthana has been booked by the CBI in a bribery case last week, in which he was named as accused. Subsequently, he wrote to the government saying a “false FIR” was filed against him. He also made allegations against the CBI chief.
Later, Prime Minister Narendra Modi intervened and called both officers, after which both were asked to go on leave. N Nageswar Rao, a joint director in the CBI, was given the charge to head the CBI in Verma’s place.
