Setback For Opposition In Supreme Court Over "Misuse Of Central Agencies"

Opposition lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi decided to withdraw the petition after Chief Justice DY Chandrachud expressed doubts about the validity and feasibility of the petition.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to consider a petition by 14 opposition parties that accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of abusing its power and using central investigating agencies to harass and intimidate its political rivals.

The petition, filed by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi on behalf of the opposition parties, claimed that there was a "drastic and exponential increase" in the number of cases registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against opposition leaders since 2014 when PM Modi came to power.

Mr Singhvi cited statistics to show that the ED had registered 6 times more cases in the last seven years than in the previous decade, but had a conviction rate of only 23 per cent. He also alleged that 95 per cent of the ED and CBI cases were against opposition leaders from across the country and that this was a clear indication of political vendetta and bias.

However, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud expressed doubts about the validity and feasibility of the petition. He asked Mr Singhvi whether he was seeking immunity for opposition parties from investigation and prosecution, and whether they had any special rights as citizens.