The NGO, Common Cause, had approached Court challenging Asthana’s appointment as Special Director on the grounds that his name had figured in a 2011 diary seized from
Sterling Biotech – a company being probed by the CBI for money laundering. Asthana was not named in the FIR but was presumably the subject of an ongoing investigation by his own agency. Asthana was entangled in a bribery controversy along with
Alok Verma, Special Director CBI in a corruption scandal; both accused each other of bribery and subsequently asked to go on leave by the Government, on the recommendation of the
Central Vigilance Commission. Verma and Asthana were sent on leave on the recommendation of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) by the Government of India. Verma appealed to the Supreme Court of India, while Asthana went to the Delhi High Court. The Supreme Court canceled the decision to send Verma on leave, and he was reinstated as the CBI director two months later with the instruction not to take any major decisions until the Selection Committee decides his fate over the corruption charges. The investigation by the CBI has been completed, giving Rakesh Asthana a clean chit, which was accepted by the Special CBI Court. ==References==