Explainer: Why govt wants Enforcement Directorate chief to continue | India News

NEW DELHI: Days after the Supreme Court held as “illegal” the repeated extension granted to Enforcement Directorate (ED) chief Sanjay Kumar Mishra, the Centre on Wednesday moved the top court again seeking his continuance till October 15. The court has agreed to hear the matter today.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that the government has moved an application seeking modification of its July 11 verdict. He urged for ED Director Mishra’s extension in view of the ongoing FATF review. Mishra’s absence, the government says, will adversely impact India’s national interests.
Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental body set up to combat money laundering and terror financing. Around 200 countries, including India, have committed to implementing FATF standards, the government said in its plea.

The verdict
The Supreme Court on July 11 held as “illegal” two successive extensions granted to Mishra between 2020 and 2022, and said that the Centre’s orders were in “breach” of the apex court’s directions issued in 2021 against extensions to the IRS officer.
Significance
Mishra is handling several high-profile cases – mostly related to suspected money laundering. Those under the agency’s scanner include former finance minister P Chidambaram, Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar, former Jammu & Kashmir chief ministers Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, former Delhi deputy CM Manish Sisodia and Young India, an organisation controlled by the Gandhi family that owns the National Herald newspaper.
Last year, the government also issued an ordinance allowing the tenures of the ED and CBI directors to be extended by up to three years after the mandated term of two years.