Want to step down,RAW chief tells PM; backs Tripathi as successor

The Indian Express had reported last month that if Verma went before his tenure was over,the likely beneficiary would be Tripathi. If Verma completes his tenure,Tripathi,who turned 60 on December 11,will retire next week without getting a shot at being RAW chief.

Tripathi’s candidature for the top post was rejected in 2009. The government put aside the entire panel — which included another senior officer,P V Kumar — and brought in the outsider Verma,then Secretary (Security) in the Home Ministry.

It is learnt that Verma has not asked for any post-retirement job with the government,but has conveyed that failure to appoint Tripathi as his successor would divide the agency. When contacted by The Indian Express,Verma declined to comment.

Tripathi is under a cloud after a $350-million deal to purchase airborne electronic surveillance systems that he was handling drew heavy criticism from the Cabinet Secretariat’s finance department — which said the equipment had been purchased from Israeli manufacturer ELTA without trials and competitive bidding for add-on equipment.

RAW has also been gripped by controversy over the alleged misuse of secret funds to purchase cars for its staff,and building a new tower in its office without clearances. RAW is the largest recipient of secret funds — close to Rs 350 crore this year — and is exempt from public scrutiny of its accounts. The controversy was reported by The Indian Express on November 28.