s. 6-A - Approval of Central Government to conduct
inquiry or investigation - Court monitored investigation --
Allocation of coal blocks - Investigation by CBI - Supreme
Court monitoring the investigation - Held: Approval of Central
Government is not necessary u/s 6A in a matter where inquiry/investigation into the crime under the PC Act is being
monitored by Supreme Court - This position holds good in
cases which are directed by the Court to be registered and
the inquiry/investigation thereon is actually being monitored
by it - When Court monitors the investigation, there is already departure inasmuch as the investigating agency informs the
Court about the progress of the investigation - Once the
constitutional court monitors the inquiry/investigation which is
only done in extraordinary circumstances and in exceptional
situation having regard to the larger public interest, the inquiry/ investigation into the crime under the PC Act against public
servants_ by CBI must be allowed to have its course
unhindered and uninfluenced and the procedure
contemplated by s.6A cannot be put at the level which
impedes exercise of constitutional power by Supreme Court G
under Arts. 32, 136 and 142 of the Constitution - Any other
view in this regard will be directly inconsistent with the power
conferred on the highest constitutional Court - The fact that
the investigation is monitored by the constitutional court is itself an assurance that investigation/inquiry by CBI is not
actuated with ulterior motive to harass any public servant and
the investigating agency performs its duties and discharges
its responsibility of fair and impartial investigation
uninfluenced by extraneous considerations - Any prohibition or restriction contained in ordinary laws cannot act as a
/imitation on the constitutional power of Supreme Court - In
the event any senior officer (Joint Secretary or above) or the
Central Government in an ongoing inquiry/investigation by
CBI being monitored by the Court has reason to believe that such officer may be unnecessarily harassed by CBI, then
Central Government or the senior officer can always apply to
the: Court which is monitoring the inquiry/investigation for
protection of his rights - The interplay between s. 6A of the
Act and a constitutional court monitored investigation should
be such as to protect senior government officials from frivolous and vexatious complaints and at the same time prevent them from exercising influence or prolonging the
grant of previous approval by the Central Government thereby effectively scuttling the investigation - Besides, the Code
enables the local police to investigate a senior Government officer without previous approval of Central Government [ss.
156 and 155] - It is, therefore, necessary that s. 6A be so
interpreted that the requirement of a previous approval is not
necessary when the investigation by CBI is being monitored
by a constitutional court - An official act of CBI must also be presumed to have been done in accordance with law -
Constitution of India, 1950 - Arts. 32, 136 and 142 - Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1973 - ss.155 and 156.