SC seeks response of Centre, CVC on pleas challenging extension of tenure of ED, CBI chiefs

New Delhi, Aug 02: The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought response of the Centre and the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) on a batch of petitions challenging the extension of tenure of of the heads of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) up to five years. The matter has been kept for hearing after 10 days.

A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justice Krishna Murari issued notices to the respondents based on as many as eight petitions, including the ones filed by Congress leaders Randeep Singh Surjewala and Jaya Thakur and TMC leader Saket Gokhale.

Lawyer M L Sharma had filed the first petition on the issue.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana issued notice on the petitions challenging the November 15, 2021 ordinance by which amendments were made to the Central Vigilance Commission Act and the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act governing the appointment of CBI and ED chiefs. The present ordinance amended Section 25 of the CVC Act, which governs the appointment and tenure of ED director.

The petitioners contended that the Centre's decision violated the Supreme Court's verdict in September.Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for Surjewala told the court that ED administers not just offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act(PMLA) but also the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). He pointed out that unlike the appointment of the CBI director, the selection of ED director under Section 25 of the CVC Act is done by a committee headed by chief vigilance commissioner, vigilance commissioners and bureaucrats. "It is an important question to be gone into as who appoints ED director as all representatives are from executive," Singhvi said.

The Supreme Court had held that no further extension shall be granted to Mishra beyond November. However, just a day before his retirement date in November, the Centre extended his tenure by a year.

Mishra is a 1984-batch Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer of the Income Tax(IT) Department cadre.

The decision came three days after the government introduced two Ordinances which allowed to extend the tenures of the directors of the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate to up to five years.

This was the second term extension for Mishra. In 2020, his tenure was extended for 12 months after he had completed his two-year term. The petitioners alleged that the ordinances were introduced to avoid the scrutiny of the Parliament.