The Centre on Tuesday appointed Subodh Kumar Jaiswal as the new Director of the prestigious Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
A 1985-batch Maharashtra cadre IPS Officer, Jaiswal was picked ahead of two other key officers in the race for the post – SSB DG Kumar Rajesh Chandra and Special Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) VSK Kaumudi.
He held the top post in the Mumbai police and subsequently was the police chief of Maharashtra before being called for central deputation earlier this year.
He has not served in the CBI, though he had been part of the Intelligence Bureau and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).
Jaiswal has been serving as the Director-General of the CISF. He will have a two-year tenure as the CBI chief.
The shortlist of three officers was approved by the high-powered selection committee — comprising PM Narendra Modi, CJI N V Ramana and leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury — after the CJI cited an eligibility rule regarding minimum six-month remainder term, based on a 2019 Supreme Court ruling that, ironically, pertained only to state DGP appointments. The criteria eliminated several hopefuls, including BSF DG Rakesh Asthana and NIA DG Y C Modi.
