Vigilance Commissioner A S Rajeev assumed charge as the Acting Central Vigilance Commissioner on August 3, 2026, following the completion of the tenure of incumbent Praveen Kumar Srivastava. The President authorised Rajeev, through a notification of the Department of Personnel and Training, to head the apex anti-corruption body until a regular Central Vigilance Commissioner is appointed. A career banker with nearly four decades of experience, Rajeev was the Managing Director and CEO of the Bank of Maharashtra before he joined the Commission.
Who Is A S Rajeev?
A S Rajeev is one of the few bankers to have risen to the top of India’s vigilance machinery. He was appointed a Vigilance Commissioner by the President on February 9, 2024, under Section 4(1) of the Central Vigilance Commission Act, 2003, and joined the Commission on March 11, 2024. He brings a strong academic record, including a Fellow Chartered Accountant qualification, an MBA in Banking and Finance, a Certified Associate of the Indian Institute of Bankers, and a Diploma in Information System Audit, alongside a graduate degree in Mathematics.
The Commission’s composition makes this promotion notable. Since January 2026, the CVC has been at its full strength of three members, with Praveen Vashista, a former IPS officer of the Bihar cadre and ex-special secretary (internal security) in the Union Home Ministry, and A S Rajeev serving as the two Vigilance Commissioners under Praveen Kumar Srivastava. With Rajeev now holding the acting chief’s charge, the vacancy created by Srivastava’s exit keeps the statutory strength at three for the moment.
A Career Across Public Sector Banks
Rajeev’s professional journey of more than 38 years spans four public sector banks, giving him first-hand knowledge of exactly the institutions the CVC oversees.
He began at Syndicate Bank and later moved to Vijaya Bank, where he rose to General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, handling portfolios such as treasury, international banking, planning and vigilance. In 2016, he became Executive Director of Indian Bank. From December 2018 to February 2024, he served as Managing Director and CEO of the Bank of Maharashtra, where he steered the bank out of the Reserve Bank of India’s Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework, a monitoring regime imposed on banks with high bad loans and weak capital levels. During his tenure, the lender grew from a small-sized institution into a robust mid-sized bank.
His leadership extended beyond banking. He served as Vice Chairman of the Indian Banks’ Association, and as a nominee director on the boards of the National Payments Corporation of India, the EXIM Bank and the New India Assurance Company. This blend of financial regulation, corporate governance and institutional oversight is expected to inform his stewardship of the Commission.
Why an Acting Chief Was Needed
The interim arrangement became necessary when the tenure of Praveen Kumar Srivastava, an IAS officer of the 1988 batch, Assam-Meghalaya cadre, concluded on August 2, 2026. Srivastava retired as Secretary (Coordination) in the Cabinet Secretariat in January 2022, was appointed a Vigilance Commissioner on July 21, 2022, and joined the Commission on August 3 that year. He officiated as the Central Vigilance Commissioner from December 25, 2022, and was sworn in to the post in full on May 29, 2023.
Under the CVC Act, 2003, the Central Vigilance Commissioner and the Vigilance Commissioners hold office for a term of four years or until they reach 65 years of age, whichever is earlier. When the post of the chief falls vacant, the law allows one of the sitting Vigilance Commissioners to act in that capacity so that the Commission’s work is not disrupted. It was to fill this gap that the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, issued a notification on July 31, 2026, authorising A S Rajeev to perform the functions of the Central Vigilance Commissioner.
The notification was issued under sub-section (1) of Section 10 of the CVC Act, which empowers the President to make such an arrangement in a vacancy. The order took effect from the day the vacancy arose, August 3, 2026, and will remain in force until a regular Central Vigilance Commissioner is appointed or until further orders.
The Central Vigilance Commission and Its Functions
The Central Vigilance Commission is the apex statutory body charged with promoting integrity and curbing corruption in Central Government organisations. It was established on February 11, 1964, on the recommendations of the Santhanam Committee on Prevention of Corruption, which the government had set up in 1962 after concerns in Parliament about growing corruption in public administration.
For its first three decades, the CVC functioned as an executive body, free of control from any ministry or department but without statutory backing. That changed in the wake of the landmark Vineet Narain case of 1997, in which the Supreme Court, hearing a public interest petition linked to the Jain Hawala scam, directed that the CVC be given statutory status and that it superintend the work of the Central Bureau of Investigation in corruption matters. The government followed up with an ordinance in 1998, and Parliament finally enacted the Central Vigilance Commission Act in 2003, giving the body its present statutory form.
Under the Act, the CVC is a multi-member body headed by a Central Vigilance Commissioner, with not more than two Vigilance Commissioners. Its broad mandate includes superintending vigilance administration across Central Government ministries, departments, public sector undertakings and public sector banks; advising the government and its authorities on vigilance matters and strengthening preventive vigilance mechanisms; exercising supervision over the CBI in investigations under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and reviewing the progress of such probes; conducting preliminary inquiries into complaints referred by the Lokpal against public servants; and submitting an annual report to the President on its performance.
The Commission does not have its own investigation wing. It depends on the CBI and on the network of Chief Vigilance Officers posted in each department and public body, who act as its extended arm. Its expenses, including the salaries of its members, are charged to the Consolidated Fund of India and are not subject to a vote in Parliament, a design meant to shield its functioning from executive pressure.
How the CVC Chief Is Appointed
The Central Vigilance Commissioner and the Vigilance Commissioners are appointed by the President, on the recommendation of a high-powered committee comprising the Prime Minister as chairperson, the Union Home Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha as members. This three-member formula, with its inbuilt political representation, was itself a product of the Vineet Narain judgment.
The service conditions of the Central Vigilance Commissioner match those of the chairperson of the Union Public Service Commission, while those of the Vigilance Commissioners match the members of the Union Public Service Commission. These terms cannot be changed to their disadvantage after appointment. A Central Vigilance Commissioner or a Vigilance Commissioner may be removed by the President only on grounds such as insolvency, conviction for an offence involving moral turpitude, or infirmity of body or mind, and for proven misbehaviour or incapacity after an inquiry by the Supreme Court.
In the present case, a regular appointment to the top post will follow the same route. The committee will recommend a name to the President, and the appointee will be sworn in for a fresh term of four years. Until then, the acting arrangement ensures the Commission continues to function without interruption.
What the Change Means for Vigilance Administration
The appointment of a career banker to head the country’s integrity watchdog is significant for several reasons. Public sector banks are among the biggest stakeholders in the CVC’s work, since the Commission supervises vigilance in banks, financial institutions and government companies, and since a large share of the corruption complaints it handles relate to the financial sector.
Rajeev’s banking background also brings practical weight to his new role. He has run the loan book, treasury and vigilance functions of major lenders, and he personally oversaw the exit of a public sector bank from the PCA framework, a process that demanded rigorous scrutiny of asset quality and governance. His familiarity with the working of the Reserve Bank of India, the Indian Banks’ Association and institutions such as the NPCI gives him a clear view of how money flows through the financial system and where vigilance gaps tend to emerge.
The continuity of leadership matters because the Commission sits at the centre of anti-corruption oversight in the Union Government. From disciplinary proceedings against senior officers to supervision of corruption investigations, its workload does not pause for the appointment process. The interim arrangement is intended to keep that machinery running while a full-time chief is chosen.
The immediate task for Rajeev and the Commission will be to sustain the momentum of vigilance administration, particularly in banking and the public sector, and to see the Commission through until a regular Central Vigilance Commissioner takes charge.
Key Takeaways
- A S Rajeev, formerly Vigilance Commissioner, assumed charge as Acting Central Vigilance Commissioner on August 3, 2026, after the tenure of Praveen Kumar Srivastava ended on August 2.
- The appointment was made through a DoPT notification dated July 31, 2026, issued under Section 10(1) of the Central Vigilance Commission Act, 2003.
- Rajeev, a career banker with 38 years of experience across four public sector banks, was earlier MD and CEO of the Bank of Maharashtra and joined the CVC as Vigilance Commissioner on March 11, 2024.
- The Central Vigilance Commission was established in 1964 on the Santhanam Committee recommendations and became a statutory body through the CVC Act, 2003, following the Vineet Narain case of 1997.
- The Central Vigilance Commissioner is appointed by the President on the recommendation of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Union Home Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
- The tenure of a Central Vigilance Commissioner is four years or until the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
