At a time when the country is witnessing an outcry against corruption, 279 CBI applications seeking sanction to prosecute senior government officials in corruption cases are pending with different Central and state government departments, in some cases for years.
The CBI wants to prosecute 33 officials in Assam, while Jharkhand comes second: the state is sitting on requests to allow 13 officials to be prosecuted.
Under the existing laws, the CBI is required to obtain sanction from a Central or state government department to prosecute a senior official.
The urban development ministry is sitting on applications to prosecute 14 CPWD officials, while 17 requests relating to officials of different coalfields are also pending.
The CBI sought sanction to prosecute six customs officials based in Visakh-apatnam on a single day — March 8, 2011. The railway ministry is also yet to sanction action against five senior officials — pending since March 31.