The two amendments to extend the tenures of the directors of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) were cleared by President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday.
Notably, the fixed tenure of the chiefs of the two central probe agencies was two years, which can now be extended for three more years to five years.
The Parliament had cleared the two acts – The Delhi Police Establishment (Amendment) Act (DSPE), 2021 and the Central Vigilance Commission (Amendment) Act (CVC), 2021, last week, pending the president's nod.
Ahead of the Winter Session of the Parliament, the two laws will replace an ordinance issued by the Centre that extended the tenures of the two chiefs.
The Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pension, Jitendra Singh had introduced the two laws in Rajya Sabha on December 14 where it was passed by a voice vote. Earlier, the DSPE Act was cleared by the Lok Sabha on December 3 and the CVC Act on December 9.
Mr. Singh had said that the amendments would help maintain the speed of investigation as crime methodology had become highly sophisticated.
He then added that the investigation had become a far more difficult task while presenting the DSPE law in the Upper House.
Citing that most other countries had much longer terms for such posts, he had said that the ED played a crucial role in money laundering cases, as he moved the CVC Act in the Rajya Sabha.
