‘More documents than required’: SC takes note of response on contracts allegedly linked to Pema Khandu’s relatives

The Supreme Court on August 24 took note of the Arunachal Pradesh government’s response to allegations that contracts were awarded to firms linked to relatives of Chief Minister Pema Khandu, and said the state had provided the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) with documents relating to all contracts.

The matter was heard by a bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta in connection with the CBI’s status report. The hearing followed the court’s August 3 order, which had recorded allegations that the state government was not fully cooperating with the investigation and had directed the personal appearance of the Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary (Home).

Representing the state, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Arunachal Pradesh Advocate General Indranil Choudhury told the court that the government had complied with its directions and provided the CBI with all information and documents sought by the agency.

The bench observed that the state appeared to have supplied documents concerning all contracts, rather than limiting the material to those involving firms allegedly connected to the Chief Minister’s family. It said submitting a large volume of documents could make the investigation more difficult and potentially delay the process.

The court also took note of affidavits filed by the Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary (Home) in response to the show-cause notices issued following the August 3 order. It clarified that the two officials would not be required to appear personally in future hearings unless the court specifically directs them to do so.

During the hearing, petitioner’s counsel Prashant Bhushan sought to restrict the document scrutiny to firms allegedly connected to the Chief Minister’s family instead of examining contracts across the state.

The bench, however, remarked that the petitioners had contributed to the situation by raising the issue and that the state had supplied more documents than were necessary for the purpose of the investigation.

The court also took up WP(C) No. 995/2026, filed by Nabam Kakum against the State of Arunachal Pradesh over similar allegations and tagged with the present matter, MA 2216/2026 in WP(C) No. 543/2024. It directed notices to all concerned and allowed the state to file its response, if it considered one necessary.

The CBI has been directed to submit a fresh status report within two weeks. The matter will be listed again after four weeks.

The detailed order of the court is awaited.