TNI Bureau: Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, has voiced significant criticism of the Union government’s approach to selecting the next Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). He contends that the process lacked transparency and that vital information was intentionally withheld from the Selection Committee.

In a forceful letter dispatched to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 12, Gandhi articulated his concerns in his capacity as a member of the high-powered committee tasked with recommending the next CBI Director. He formally registered his dissent concerning the committee’s deliberations.

The Congress leader alleged that the government has a pattern of misusing the CBI to pursue political adversaries, journalists, and critical voices. He asserted that while the inclusion of the Leader of Opposition on the selection panel was meant to safeguard against “institutional capture,” he was effectively denied any substantive participation in the selection procedure.

Gandhi claimed that his repeated written requests for the self-appraisal reports or “360-degree assessment reports” of the eligible candidates went unfulfilled. He stated that he was expected, instead, to review the appraisal records of 69 candidates for the first time during the committee meeting itself.

Describing the withholding of information as “deliberate” and “without any legal basis,” Gandhi accused the government of reducing the process to a mere formality aimed at confirming a “pre-decided candidate.” He also referenced similar objections raised during a prior meeting on May 5, 2025, noting that his earlier proposals for a fair and transparent selection process had not elicited any response from the government.

Concluding his letter, Gandhi stated that by withholding essential information from the Selection Committee, the government had diminished the constitutional standing of the Leader of Opposition. He emphasized that “The Leader of Opposition is not a rubber stamp.”