New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday expressed strong disagreement over the selection process of the next CBI director during the meeting of the high-powered panel led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said he did not want to be part of a “partisan exercise”.In his two-page dissent note, he alleged that the government has reduced the selection process to a mere formality and the Leader of the Opposition (LOP) cannot be a rubber stamp.“By refusing to give important information to the selection committee, the government has reduced it to a mere formality. The Leader of the Opposition is not a rubber stamp.In his dissent note submitted to the Prime Minister during the meeting, Gandhi said, “I cannot abdicate my constitutional duty by participating in this partisan exercise. Therefore, I express my dissent in the strongest terms.”The Prime Minister-led panel, which has Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Gandhi as its members, met at the Prime Minister’s residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg.Gandhi also accused the government of misusing the key investigative agency to target opposition leaders, journalists and critics.“I am writing to you in my capacity as Chairman of the Committee constituted to recommend the next Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to record my dissent on its proceedings. Your government has repeatedly misused the CBI, which was intended to be India’s premier investigative agency, to target political opponents, journalists and critics.“The Leader of the Opposition has been included in the selection committee to prevent such institutional capture. Sadly, you have continued to deny me any meaningful role in this process,” he said in his dissent note.The Leader of Opposition said that despite repeated written requests, he has not been provided the self-assessment report or 360-degree report of the qualified candidates.“Instead, I was expected to scrutinize the assessment records of sixty-nine candidates for the first time during the committee meeting. 360-degree reports were denied to me,” he said.

Sources said that since Rahul Gandhi did not participate in the discussion on the names, the meeting ended within five minutes. The remaining 35 minutes were spent in asking questions on Iran and other issues. Rahul said that deliberate refusal to provide information without legal basis is a mockery of the selection process and will ensure that only “your pre-determined candidate is selected”. Rahul said on X: “In his post on X, he said, “I cannot abdicate my constitutional duty by participating in a partisan exercise. The leader of the opposition is not a rubber stamp.