The Centre appointed Rahul Navin, acting chief of Enforcement Directorate, as the central agency’s full-time director for a fixed tenure of two years. A 1993-batch IRS officer, he had been holding additional charge of ED director since Sept last year when its then chief S K Mishra demitted office. His elevation had looked imminent since his promotion to the rank of additional secretary in Jan.
In a notification, Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved Navin’s appointment as “director of enforcement in ED for a period of two years”.
Navin, who has been with the agency since 2019, is considered an expert in international taxation, Foreign Exchange Management Act and Prevention of Money Laundering Act. During his tenure with ED, he has been involved in supervision of all high-profile investigations. Before taking over as acting chief of the agency, he held the charge of vigilance and administration. He holds BTech and MTech degrees from IIT Kanpur and an MBA from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne. With his appointment, Navin gets a fixed tenure of two years, in addition to the possibility of an extension of service thrice, as per the modified rules, one year at a time.
ED has been in the eye of controversy for arresting senior politicians, including sitting CMs . It has lately drawn attention for a different reason: restitution of properties to victims of financial crimes.
