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Back from Australia, PM Modi to decide on police top brass

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi back from Australia, appointment to these posts are likely to be finalised in near future.

The government has also to fill up some of the key positions which have been lying vacant for months, including that of Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC). On retirement of Pradeep Kumar, vigilance commissioner Rajiv has been acting as CVC.

It has been learnt that appointments committee of Cabinet headed by PM Narendra Modi has zeroed in on some of the senior police officers for the post of next CBI chief. The present CBI director Ranjit Sinha’s tenure is ending on 2 December.

Sources said, names of three Bihar-cadre IPS officers – Abhayanand (1977 batch), Anil Sinha (1979 batch) and Krishna Choudhary (1979 batch) -- figure in the list of six from which the new CBI director would be chosen. Abhayanand is presently the Director General-cum-Commandant General of Bihar homeguards and fire services. He is due to retire on 31 December 2014.

If selected for the new job at the Centre, he would get an extension of service for two more years, as per existing rules, and would retire in 2016.

Sinha and Choudhary would retire on 31 January 2016 and 30 June 2017, respectively. While Anil is special director in the CBI, Krishna is director-general, Railway Protection Force. Before moving to the CBI, Anil Sinha was with the Central Vigilance Commission. Also, names of Prakash Mishra, a 1977-batch officer of Odisha cadre, NIA chief Sharad Kumar (who is retiring on 31 October 2015), former Mumbai Police Commissioner Arup Patnaik are doing rounds as probable candidates for the CBI director.

The Central Information Commission (CIC), the apex transparency body under the Right to Information Act, has also been running without any Chief since 22 August.

Initially, the government was reluctant to go ahead with the appointments since there was no Leader of Opposition (LoP), who is to be part of the panel. However, the Right to Information Act states that in case the LoP is not recognised, the leader of the single largest group in the Opposition can be part of the committee.

The other departments for which the government is looking for strong candidates are: IB, CRPF, ITBP, BSF, CISF, NSG etc. The present Director General of the CRPF Dilip Trivedi will retire on 30 November 2014, while DG ITBP Subhash Goswami will retire on 31 December this year. There are speculations that Rajiv Mehta (IPS) could be made the next ITBP chief.

The DGP of BSF Devendra Kumar Pathak, a 1979 batch IPS officer of the Assam-Meghalaya cadre, will retire on February, 2016 and the CISF chief Arvind Ranjan’s tenure ending on April 2015. Also, NSG chief Jayanto Narayan Choudhury’s tenure is ending in May 2015, which the government is considering shortlisting ‘highly efficient officer’ at the earliest considering it gives protection to the prime minister.

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