A day before the Enforcement Directorate’s incumbent chief Sanjay Kumar Mishra was to complete his tenure; the Centre on Wednesday extended his tenure for a year, till November 18, 2022.
The decision comes two days after the government brought in an ordinance to amend the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) Act to empower itself to give tenure to CBI and ED chiefs up to five years. Another ordinance was brought in on Monday to change the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act to give CBI directors tenure of five years as well.
The government also tweaked the Union government’s Fundamental Rules on Tuesday to enable extensions given to ED and CBI chiefs using the powers granted by the two ordinances.
An order issued by the department of revenue said that “The President of India is pleased to extend the tenure of Sanjay Kumar Mishra (Indian Revenue Service officer of 1984 batch) as Director of Enforcement in the ED for a period of one year beyond November 18, 2021, i.e. November 18, 2022 or until further orders, whichever is earlier”.
Opposition parties have targeted the government over using the ordinance route before the Parliament session. Congress leader Manish Tewari said on Tuesday that political parties should approach the Supreme Court against the two ordinances, which he termed “illegal”.
{{/usCountry}}Opposition parties have targeted the government over using the ordinance route before the Parliament session. Congress leader Manish Tewari said on Tuesday that political parties should approach the Supreme Court against the two ordinances, which he termed “illegal”.
{{/usCountry}}The Supreme Court had in September ordered that Mishra should not be given any further extension but the ordinance brought in on Monday is believed to primarily benefit Mishra, who has already completed three years as ED chief.
Mishra is heading the agency since November 2018. During his tenure, arrest of several high profile persons accused of money laundering has taken place including former Yes Bank Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer - Rana Kapoor, ICICI Bank former MD-CEO Chanda Kochhar’s husband Deepak Kochhar, deportation and arrest of British middleman Christian Michel James in AgustaWestland scam, alleged middleman Sushen Mohan Gupta, Rajiv Saxena, former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath’s nephew Ratul Puri and former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh among others.
The agency has also jointly, along with the CBI, secured the extradition of former liquor baton Vijay Mallya from the UK but it is stuck due to “secret political proceedings” there.