The CBI should work jointly with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to take action in corruption cases in Andhra Pradesh, after the State government withdrew general consent to the CBI, according to Principal Secretary A.R. Anuradha.
In the first case after the GO. 176 on November 8 withdrawing the general consent, the agency approached the AP Principal Secretary (Home) requesting for consent to act in a corruption case against a Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) employee in Machilipatnam, M.K. Ramaneswar.
Explaining the policy of the State government, Ms. Anuradha asked the CBI authorities to work jointly with the ACB for which the Central investigation authority did not agree to.
The ACB however announced that it was ready to work with the CBI.
“The ACB has wider footprint in AP with 13 offices in all district headquarters and the DG office in Vijayawada. We have much manpower compared to the CBI and the ACB is in a better position to act swiftly on corruption complaints,” ACB DGP R.P. Thakur said.
Good network
The ACB officials said they had good network in the Central government offices and were getting information on corrupt officers. It would focus on the Central government offices from now, an ACB officer said.
“The AP government reiterates its stand that the ACB will deal with corruption cases and welcomes all agencies including the CBI to work with the State investigating agency [ACB]”, Ms. Anuradha said.
“Our aim is to put AP in the list of least corrupt States and we are ready to coordinate with all agencies including the CBI, the ED, the IT and other wings,” Mr. Thakur said.
