The Supreme Court quashing the third extension of ED director Sanjay Kumar Mishra was hailed by the opposition leaders, with Congress saying the verdict is a vindication of its stand and a slap on the face of the government.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday held as illegal the third extension granted to the Enforcement Directorate chief Sanjay Kumar Mishra and curtailed his extended tenure to July 31. The 1984-batch IRS officer was otherwise to remain in office till November 18, 2023.
Congress general secretary K C Venugopal said his party has maintained from the beginning that the extension of tenure of the ED director is "totally illegal".
"The Congress party's stand has been vindicated. The government has been exposed today," he said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi said the ruling was a “slap on the face of those misusing” the agency and also called for an inquiry into all the decisions undertaken by Mishra for the period his extension was termed illegal.
“Excellent decision by the Hon. SC. Slap on the face of those who were misusing authority and through illegal tenure extensions had created an environment of terror and character assassination,” Chaturvedi said in a tweet.
{{/usCountry}}“Excellent decision by the Hon. SC. Slap on the face of those who were misusing authority and through illegal tenure extensions had created an environment of terror and character assassination,” Chaturvedi said in a tweet.
{{/usCountry}}“Also if ED Director extension has been illegal then all the decisions undertaken by him and his team should be investigated else deemed illegal too. After this stinging verdict does the ED director have any moral authority to continue till month end?” she added.
Who were the petitioners?
The extension of Mishra was challenged by a bundle of petitions, which banked on the September 2021 order of the top court. The petitioners included Congress leaders Randeep Singh Surjewala, Jaya Thakur, and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra among others.
Mahua Moitra, a member of Lok Sabha, thanked Supreme Court for ruling Mishra's extension as invalid.
“BJP - we shall fight you in the polls, we shall fight you in the courts. we shall fight in the fields & in the streets, we shall never surrender,” she tweeted.
What the Supreme Court said
The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that the two extensions granted to ED Director Sanjay Kumar Mishra in 2021 and 2022 were illegal and gave him time till July 31 to continue in the office. A bench of Justices BR Gavai, Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol said in view of the peer review being conducted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) this year and to enable a smooth transition, Mishra's tenure will be till July 31.
The bench, however, affirmed the amendments of the Central Vigilance Commission Act, and the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act to extend the tenure of ED director for a maximum of five years.