NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has mocked CBI for proposing a three-year fixed tenure for its director as a means of securing its autonomy, saying having an institutional framework is what is important.

The Supreme Court’s comment on Wednesday came even as the Attorney General expressed the government’s reluctance to let go of its control over the agency by pointing to Section 6A of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, which makes it mandatory for the CBI to seek government approval before it can even investigate any official above the rank of joint secretary.“Everybody wants a longer tenure,” Justice RM Lodha said. “The length is immaterial. What is important is that there should be an institutional framework. No institution should be individual-centric.”The top court also observed that CBI directors should not take up any job after retirement. “No post-retirement office should be given to the director. We are weakening the courts by creating more and more tribunals,” Justice Lodha said.“We talk performance, but don’t assess functioning.” Justice Lodha is part of a three judge bench that is dealing with the issue of CBI’s autonomy in the coal blocks allocation case. These have been challenged through two petitions — one filed by lawyer Manohar Lal Sharma and another by a nonprofit organisation whose cause is being espoused by lawyer Prashant Bhushan.The court took up the issue of CBI autonomy amid a controversy over a former law minister and coal and PMO officials vetting the CBI’s status report into the probe.Attorney General GE Vahanvati said Section 6A must be adhered to as long as it exists on the statute book. The top court, which had earlier sought the government’s suggestions on ensuring CBI’s autonomy, on Wednesday sought its response by August 6 on the agency’s counter-views.The CBI’s suggestions are a mere variation of the government’s proposals to grant autonomy to the CBI. The agency’s counsel, Amarendra Sharan, said the government could easily concede those steps, which do not require any constitutional amendments.