New Delhi: A total of 16 changes have taken place in the CBI in the last eight hours, most of them in 'public interest'. It included transfers and relieving/giving additional charges. There have been changes from the investigation officer to supervisory levels, they said.

Also, CBI director Alok Verma and his deputy Rakesh Asthana were sent on leave and M Nageswar Rao, a 1986-batch Odisha cadre IPS officer, took charge as interim chief of the agency.

Check out the changes in power here:





These decisions are believed to have come as a result of the infighting between Verma and Asthana.

On October 23, after the Delhi high court refused to halt an investigation against Asthana, Verma removed him of all cases he was overseeing and pushed for his transfer out of the agency.

An FIR was lodged against the special director on bribery allegations.

The court had earlier ordered the CBI to maintain status quo on the criminal proceedings against Asthana.

Satish Dagar has been appointed to probe the case. Dagar has in the past probed cases against Dera Sachcha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim. 

His first supervisor will be DIG Tarun Gauba, who had probed Vyapam cases. At joint director-level, V Murugesan has been brought in.