The Centre on Friday moved the Supreme Court to recall its July 4 order directing that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) be constituted to probe the black money case. It described the order as ‘judicial overreach.'
The review petition said the order, which directed that the SIT be headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, amounted to judicial overreach into executive functions and was against the principle of ‘separation of powers.'
The Centre, while seeking to recall the order on the grounds that it was “bad,” requested the court to suspend the directions. The petition said: “The said order is without jurisdiction inasmuch as it impinges upon and goes contrary to the established doctrine of separation of powers. Besides, the interim order is faulty as the economic policies of the government are beyond judicial review.”
The Centre submitted that the court had gone beyond the prayers in the petition filed by the former Union Law Minister, Ram Jethmalani, and others as there was no prayer asking for the constitution of a SIT. The executive was not laggardly in its approach to tackling the black money menace, it said, pointing out that it had constituted a High Level Committee to address the issue.
Citing slackness in the investigation, the court had, on July 4, constituted the SIT under the chairmanship of retired Supreme Court Judge B.P. Jeevan Reddy to take all steps for bringing back unaccounted for monies unlawfully kept in banks abroad. The court rejected the Centre's contention that since a High Level Committee had already been set up there was no need for a Special Investigation Team.
