Himachal Pradesh-cadre IPS officer (1993 batch) Rithwik Rudra is among the frontrunners for the post of Director, Intelligence Bureau (IB), as the incumbent Tapan Deka’s tenure is ending in June.Highly placed sources told The Tribune that Deka, who has been heading the bureau since 2022 and has received two extensions, is not likely to get another extension. His tenure ends on June 30. Sources added that Rudra was currently serving as Special Director in the IB.Another senior IPS officer, Jattvibeita Khakhran — also Special Director in the IB — was also among the contenders for the post, they said. Khakhran is a 1996-batch IPS officer of the Odisha cadre.Rudra, who has previously served as Additional Director and Joint Director in the IB, is highly regarded as an efficient officer within police circles. His father was also an IPS officer, and served as Haryana DGP.Deka was appointed IB Director in 2022 for a fixed two-year term. However, in 2024, he had received a yearlong extension, till 2025, followed by another extension which ends in June this year.Meanwhile, a high-level panel comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi is expected to meet next week — most likely on May 12 — to finalise the next CBI Director, as incumbent Praveen Sood’s tenure is set to end on May 31. He, too, is unlikely to get an extension, sources said.Rajasthan DGP Rajeev Sharma, CISF DG Praveer Ranjan, and CRPF DG GP Singh are among the contenders for the CBI Director’s post. Sood is currently serving a one-year extension beyond his fixed two-year tenure, which had begun in May 2023.