The CBI special court at Nampally in Hyderabad today rejected a plea of the CBI to direct the Centre to accord quick permission to prosecute the IAS officers LV Subramanyam and BP Acharya, both accused in the APIIC-Emaar land scam case.

“This court can’t direct the Centre to accord quick sanction for their prosecution,” said the special judge Nagamaruthi Sarma. On earlier occasions, the court expressed its helplessness to proceed with the prosecution of the IAS officers without the Centre’s nod.

When the court took up the issue of extension of the remand of BP Acharya and Koneru Prasad in the Emaar case today, CBI filed a special memo seeking directions to the Centre to accord sanction speedily for the prosecution of the IAS officers. The court dismissed the plea saying it was not legally authorized to do so.

The court later extended their judicial remand till March 16 after hearing them through video conferencing. (J)