MK Subba is not an Indian, CBI tells SC

NEW DELHI, Sept 30: Mani Kumar Subba, former Congress MP from Tezpur, is not an Indian citizen, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) told the Supreme Court today. The CBI told the court that Subba’s nationality documents are forged and a case must be filed against him.

The apex court said that the petitioner, who had questioned the nationality of Subba, could approach the CBI for lodging an FIR on the basis of reports which stated that a cognizable offence was made out against the former Asom MP for cheating and forgery under the Indian Penal Code and violating the provision of the Indian Passports Act. “We are not going to give any directive to the CBI for lodging of FIR but you are at liberty to take initiative with CBI for taking action against him (Subba) on the basis of reports. The reports are against him,” a bench, comprising Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan and Justices P Sathasivam and BS Chauhan, said.

The PIL filed by a Noida resident, Birendra Nath Singh, in 2005 had alleged that the then Lok Sabha MP from Tezpur and lottery baron had come to India after a murder case had been registered against him in Nepal in the early 1970s.

Subba, three-time MP and MLA from Asom, had also cited three different places and dates of birth in his election affidavits. During the 12th Lok Sabha elections, Subba in his nomination papers recorded his place of birth as Tezpur, Asom, his date of birth being March 16, 1951.
But his dossier during the 14th Lok Sabha Subba shows his place of birth as Dabgram (Darjeeling) in West Bengal, and the date of birth as March 16, 1958. Subba, a Congress leader, was the richest candidate in Asom during the last Lok Sabha elections with cash, assets and investments worth more than Rs 60 crore.

The bench, which expressed its constraint in directing the CBI to register FIR, also refused to supply Singh’s counsel Ambhoj Kumar Sinha with the copies of the reports for pursuing the case with the agency. It said that the petitioner could only inspect the reports filed in sealed covers in the court for pursuing the matter. “No, you cannot be supplied with the copies of the reports. You will only be permitted to peruse and inspect the reports,” the bench said, declining the repeated plea of Sinha that he should be supplied with the copies of the reports for pressing the CBI to take action against Subba. Sinha said that when the three CBI reports clearly indicated that there was a clear case of forgery made out against the Congress leader, the apex court should not hesitate to order registration of a case against him by the CBI.

Meanwhile, when asked, Union Home Minister P Chidarambaram said that he would comment only after getting details of the case. THE SENTINEL