President Pratibha Patil cancels Thomas's appointment as CVC

NEW DELHI: President Pratibha Patil on Monday cancelled the appointment of PJ Thomas as chief vigilance commissioner (CVC) following the Supreme Court declaring the appointment void.

"The President has cancelled the warrant of appointment of Thomas," a Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesman said.

Six months after he was appointed to the post, the Supreme Court on March 3 struck down Thomas' appointment as CVC for his alleged involvement in a corruption case in Kerala in the 1990s.

The court said the appointment made by the high-powered committee, consisting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, home minister P Chidambaram and leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj does not exist in law. Swaraj had dissented with Thomas' selection.