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The Bombay High Court on Thursday refused to quash the First Information Report (FIR) lodged by the CBI against former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh on charges of corruption and misconduct.

A Division bench of Justice SS Shinde and Justice NJ Jamadar observed that, Deshmukh's plea seeking quashing of the FIR "deserved to be dismissed"

"The agency can legitimately probe the reinstatement of Waze after 15 years only to the extent that it links with the probe in the Rs 100 crore corruption case against Deshmukh," observed Bench

The FIR was registered against Mr Deshmukh and some unidentified persons on April 24 this year on charges of corruption and misconduct following a preliminary inquiry that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted in compliance with the high court's order

In the last hearing, while reserving the plea for judgment on July 12, the Bench had directed CBI to submit its report on the investigation conducted so far.

The High Court also refused Mr Deshmukh's request to stay its judgement to give him time to file an appeal against the same.

The state had claimed that the CBI couldn't look into these two aspects as the orders passed by the bench led by Chief Justice Dipankar Datta in April had only ordered the central agency to probe into the Rs 100 crore corruption. It had also claimed that the move of the CBI to look into these two issues was to destablize the present MVA government.

The Bench however, disallowed the central agency to probe into the alleged political intervention in the transfers and postings of policemen in the state.

While pronouncing the judgment, the bench said, "We hope officers of the CBI would work responsibly and in accordance with the law. They must understand that they serve none but the law. They have to serve the society. The CBI isn't the servant of anyone but of law."

[with Inputs from Free Press Jounal]

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