On Sunday, the center issued two decrees extending the terms of office of the Directors of the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CBI) and the Enforcement Bureau (ED) for up to five years, sparking opposition charges that this would further undermine the autonomy of investigative agencies. The following are some of the appointments of these institutions that have recently sparked controversy.
The special director of ED, Vineet Agarwal, transferred Satyabrata Kumar, the chief officer who investigated the businessmen Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi, in April 2021. Within a few hours, ED director Sanjay Mishra withdrew Satyabrata Kumar’s transfer, stating that Agarwal had no right to transfer him on his own. Officials from the anti-money laundering investigation agency stated that the government interpreted Agarwal’s actions as an attempt to intervene in the crucial Nilav Modi investigation and decided to let him pack it.
Rishi Kumar Shukla was appointed as CBI Director three days after the former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Kamal Nath, removed him from his post as chief of the national police in February 2019. Congressman Mallikarjun Kharge, who was a member of the selection panel, cited the Supreme Court’s reasons to oppose the appointment of his judgment and the Delhi Special Police Agency Act listed qualifications, integrity and experience in investigating corruption cases as prerequisites for the job of the CBI Director.
He claimed that Rishi Kumar Shukla lacks experience in handling anti-corruption cases. In the end, the objection was rejected. Rakesh Asthana was appointed as the CBI Special Director in 2016, but was opposed by the NGO Common Cause. The NGO claimed that Asthana allegedly received help from Gujarat-based companies Sterling Biotech and Sandesara Group when he was the chief of Surat police in 2011. But the court rejected the challenge to Asthana’s appointment.
Ranjit Sinha’s appointment as the head of the CBI in December 2012 also triggered a dispute with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), demanding that his promotion be suspended on the grounds that Rajya Sabha’s team suggested that the university should choose the head of the CBI.
The chairman of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Arvind Kejriwal, also questioned the “secret method” of the government’s choice of Sinha and called him a “contaminated person”. However, the government stated that the selection is fair and the Prime Minister has the right to make a decision on this matter.
News Source : Hindustan Times
