Two ordinances have been brought in by the central government to extend the tenure of the chiefs of CBI and Enforcement Directorate up to five years, the current tenure of the central agencies is two years. President Ram Nath Kovind has signed both these ordinances.
The tenure of the heads of these top agencies can be extended every year for up to three years after they have finished the two-year term.
The ordinances proclaim stated: In section 4B of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946, in sub-section (1), the following provisos shall be inserted, namely,—"Provided that the period for which the Director holds the office on his initial appointment may, in the public interest, on the recommendation of the Committee under sub-section (1) of section 4A and for the reasons to be recorded in writing, be extended up to one year at a time."
Further, no such extension will be granted after the completion of the five year period which also includes the total of the period that is mentioned in the initial appointment, the statement read.
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The ordinances also underline that "...Whereas the parliament is not in session and the President is satisfied that circumstances exist which render it necessary for him to take immediate action.”
The second-order also said that "Provided further that no such extension shall be granted after the completion of a period of five years in total including the period mentioned in the initial appointment."
Though the government did not clarify the need for this amendment, it is speculated that the move could give current ED Director Sanjay Mishra and Director CBI Subodh Jaiswal extensions on their tenures. Unless a further extension is offered, Sanjay Mishra is scheduled to end his tenure on 19 November.
Upholding the retrospective extension of ED Director Sanjay Mishra, the Supreme Court said that his tenure cannot be extended any further and also mentioned that extension to superannuating officers should only be offered in rare circumstances.
The bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice Nageshwar Rao had said, “We do not intend to interfere with the extension of tenure of the second Respondent (Mishra) in the instant case for the reason that his tenure is coming to an end in November 2021… We make it clear that no further extension shall be granted to the second respondent,”
A CBI Director is appointed by the joint approval of the Chief Justice of India, the leader of the opposition and the Prime Minister and any extension exceeding two years needs the committee's approval. A senior CBI officer said, "If a year-by-year extension has to be given, the committee will have to approve it. For ED, however, it could be easier since the order will come from the ministry."