New Delhi, August 15: Ending weeks of speculation in the power corridors, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) on Wednesday appointed 1989-Sikkim cadre IAS officer Govind Mohan as the next Home Secretary, succeeding Ajay Kumar Bhalla. Govind, presently serving as Secretary, Ministry of Culture, will join as Officer on Special Duty in the Ministry of Home Affairs. In another significant development, ACC also announced appointment IRS officer Rahul Navin, presently posted as Special Director, as the new Director of Enforcement Directorate (ED).      

"The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Govind Mohan, IAS (Sikkim: 1989), Secretary, Ministry of Culture, as Officer on Special Duty in the Ministry of Home Affairs with immediate effect. The officer will take over as Home Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, vice Ajay Kumar Bhalla, IAS (Assam-Meghalaya: 1984), on completion of his tenure on 22 August 2024," the order from ACC stated.

Mohan, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, has served as Joint Secretary and Additional Secretary in the Union Home Ministry before being appointed as Secretary in the Ministry of Culture in October 2021.

Mohan, who did his B.Tech from Banaras Hindu University and a PG Diploma from IIM Ahmedabad, has served in the Sikkim government in various capacities.

After taking over as the Union Home Secretary, the immediate challenge for Mohan will be holding assembly elections peacefully in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Incumbent Home Secretary Bhalla held a meeting with the Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday to discuss the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and force mobilisation. Bhalla was appointed Union Home Secretary in August 2019. He has had the longest tenure in this crucial post, considered next to the country’s top bureaucrat, the Cabinet Secretary. 

Meanwhile according to the ACC notification Navin, a 1993 batch IRS officer, will remain the Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for a period of two years.

Earlier, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) had approved the in-situ upgradation of Navin's rank to the level of Additional Secretary, a prerequisite for the ED Director's position.

The official order read, "The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Rahul Navin, IRS (IT:93074), Special Director, ED as Director of Enforcement in the Directorate of Enforcement for a period of two years with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post, or until further orders, whichever is earlier." /BI/