While prime minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday told reporters that he would personally study the supreme court’s observation on coal blocks allocation scam before taking “whatever action is called for”, leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha and senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley remarked that the UPA government has “denigrated the institution of law officers”.

Writing on his website, arunjaitley.com, Jaitley noted: “In most cases where government or public servants are accused, the government cannot choose the prosecutors…. It is this failing institution that has today embarrassed the UPA government. The rap that the government received from the apex court on this issue was well deserved. The delinquent must be held accountable.

“This is an occasion where the government must display some sense of responsibility and accept the suggestions which we made to the select committee on the Lok Pal Legislation.”

Both the prime minister and Jaitley made their observations shortly after the supreme court pulled up CBI for falling prey to “political interference” and showing a draft of the coal blocks allocation, or Coalgate, report to law minister Ashwani Kumar and bureaucrats in the prime minister’s office and the coal ministry.

Noting that the CBI was constituted under the Delhi Special Police (Establishment) Act, 1946, as an investigative arm of the central government to investigate cases of corruption against officials of the central government and other state instrumentalities, Jaitley said, “By controlling the process of appointment, transfers and holding out temptations for the future, the government has frustrated all attempts to make the CBI independent and autonomous.”

• Read Jaitley’s full write-up here
• Read related Governance Now column: Why appointing ex-CBI, IB chiefs as governors not a good idea