Extension of tenure of ED director is destroying country’s democratic process

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The Supreme Court has issued notice to the central government on a petition by a Congress leader challenging the third service extension granted to outgoing ED director Sanjay Kumar Mishra. A bench of justices BR Gavai and Vikram Nath asked the government to respond after six weeks It has been directed to file reply till the next hearing. Congress leader Jaya Thakur’s petition states that the third extension given to Mishra is in violation of the orders of the apex court and it is destroying the democratic process of our country. The top court is already considering a bunch of petitions challenging the validity of the extension granted to Mishra. The Supreme Court had in September 2021 ruled against giving further extension to Mishra.

Mishra was first appointed as the ED director in November 2018 for a two-year term. The two-year term had ended in November 2020. He had reached the superannuation age of 60 in May 2020. However, on November 13, 2020, the central government issued an office order stating that the President had modified the 2018 order to the effect that the period of ‘two years’ was changed to ‘three years’.

NGO Common Cause challenged this in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court, while approving the amendment, had ruled against further extension. Following the Supreme Court verdict last year, the central government came out with an ordinance amending the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) Act, empowering itself to extend the tenure of the ED director by five years. This was challenged in the Supreme Court and those petitions are currently pending. In response to those petitions, the Central Government had filed an affidavit stating that the petitions are politically motivated as the petitioners belong to political parties whose leaders are currently under the purview of the ED. PLC/GT

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