Raju becomes the first Chief of NIA; other recruitments soon

Jan 19, 2009, 08.05pm IST

NEW DELHI: Radha Vinod Raju on Monday took over as the first head of National Investigation Agency (NIA) set up in the wake of 26/11 Mumbai terror strikes to probe terror-related incidents.

59-year-old Raju, who will be at the helm of affairs till January 31 next year, took over the charge at the Union Home Ministry as no space has been earmarked for NIA office.

• Embarking on his new assignment, Raju, a 1975 batch IPS officer of Jammu and Kashmir cadre, met Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta.
• During his discussions with the Home Secretary, the NIA Chief gave the list of the officers who will form the core team of NIA set up to probe terror-related cases across the country, sources said.
• The sources said it would take at least a week for NIA to begin its work.

Before being appointed as NIA Chief, Raju was the Director General (Vigilance) of Jammu and Kashmir. His name was cleared by the Appointments' Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Considered as one of the finest of the officers, the appointment of Raju, who headed the probe into some important cases, is up to January 31, 2010. The post will be equivalent to that of Additional Director General.

Raju was associated with probes into Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, hijacking of Indian Airlines plane to Kandahar in 1999 and Naval war room leak. Serving as head of the Vigilance Bureau in Jammu and Kashmir earlier, Raju streamlined the department which was in a shamble due to the ongoing militancy.

His investigation had brought to light the alleged misappropriation by Maulvi Ifthikar Hussain Ansari, a former minister in Mufti Mohd Sayeed's cabinet.

Ecnomic Times