The CBI’s own record of bringing to book the corrupt, especially when
it involves the high and the mighty, is abysmal. The list of cases
where the accused have either gone scot-free or are yet to be punished
is endless--- the hawala scam, the fodder scam, the telecom scam, the
Taj corridor scam, the Tehelka expose and all those disproportionate
assets cases involving Lalu Prasad, Mulayam, Mayawati, Jayalalithaa,
Om Prakash Chautala and so many others. On top of this, to suggest
that those who carryout sting operations to expose the corrupt should
be prosecuted is preposterous, to say the least.
But that is what the CBI has done.  In its affidavit before the apex
court it has said that those who exposed Dilip Singh Judeo, minister for
environment and forests during the NDA regime should be booked under
the Prevention of Corruption Act! Judeo was caught on camera
taking bribe to award mining licenses in 2003, no less. In CBI's wisdom, ordinary
citizens can’t be allowed to expose corruption through sting
operations because of what it describes as “insurmountable
ramifications”. Well, what can be worse than the CBI failing to expose
corruption and then failing to punish those already exposed? In effect, is the CBI not saying that it wants to save the corrupt and punish those who expose
corruption! Is that what the CBI should really be doing?