india

Updated: Nov 28, 2018 12:57 IST

The Supreme Court on Wednesday handed over all 16 Bihar shelter home abuse cases to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), rejecting state government’s contention that such a move would cast a doubt on state’s ability.

This takes up the number of cases CBI is probing to 17 as the agency is already probing the Muzaffarpur shelter home case.

The 17 shelter homes were indicted in a study by Mumbai-based Tata Institute of Social Sciences. But, the state government registered criminal cases against only 10 shelter homes. Over the last few weeks, the Supreme Court has taken the Bihar government to task on several occasions for its handling of the probe.

On Wednesday, CBI informed the court it had no objection in taking up the cases. This came after the top court rapped the agency whose lawyer told the court that interim director of the CBI M Nageswar Rao was unable to give a view on the matter as he had been barred from taking any major policy decision.

“The order in Verma’s case doesn’t mean that investigations in cases by CBI will stop,” the court said asking the CBI lawyer to seek instructions on phone.

Rao, who was appointed as interim chief of CBI after the government divested director Alok Verma and his deputy Rakesh Asthana of duties of all responsibilities, was directed by the Supreme Court to perform routine functions, but not take any major decisions.

Also read | ‘Shameful, inhuman’: SC raps Bihar over rule violations in 17 shelter homes