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The Bombay High Court on Friday was informed by Maharashtra government that it has challenged the portions of the FIR filed by the CBI against former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh.

The Division Bench of Justice Sambhaji Shinde and Justice Nizamoodin Jamadar while hearing the petition was informed by the Maharashtra government's lawyer and Senior Advocate Rafique Dada that, “the state did not want to interfere in the CBI's probe against Deshmukh for alleged corruption” and that it is no longer concerned with Deshmukh since he isn't a minister anymore.

The State challenged two unnumbered paragraphs from the CBI’s FIR which referred to the reinstatement of arrested officer Sachin Vaze and the alleged interference in the transfers and postings of policemen.

“The CBI’s FIR is simply copy-paste from Param Bir Singh’s petition. This is overreaching the court. The CBI cannot travel beyond what the court granted and that can't be part of the FIR,”  Dada asserted.

Dada submitted on behalf of state that, “Our state is a federal state and the consent has to be protected. CBI’s power to do investigation is based on actual consent of state & in absence of such consent has to be done by Constitutional Bench of this Hon'ble Court"

The State’s counsel further argued that the CBI overreached the jurisdiction as laid down for the agency by the orders passed by Chief Justice Dipankar Datta while ordering a preliminary enquiry into the allegations of Param Bir Singh and referred to Mayawati’s Case (Taj Corridor) where the Hon'ble Supreme Court quashed the FIR on the basis that it went beyond what was directed by the court.

According to Senior Advocate Dada the orders did not mentioned about how and why Sachin Waze was reinstated and that the CJ's bench specifically refused to deal with contentions of undue interference in the transfers and postings. Therefore he concluded that it was Param Bir Singh who reinstated Waze and the CBI copy-pasted from the same petition in the FIR.

Advocate Subhash Jha, appearing for an intervenor in submissions after Dada, said the state’s petition is unprecedented and frivolous, vexatious and should be dismissed with exemplary costs.

“This all is nothing but eye wash. There are two reasons for State reacting now and that is to act as mouth piece for Anil Desmukh or to protect certain individuals who could be entangled later. This hidden agenda must be inquired by CBI too,” argued Advocate Jha

The matter would be heard next on Monday.