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Seven CMs up in arms against anti-terror body
Vishwa Mohan |TNN | Feb 18, 2012, 03.24AM IST
New Delhi: The newly set up National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC) has run into strong political resistance with a group of chief ministers coming out in the open to oppose its powers in a development that can trigger serious doubts about the effectiveness of the agency which is billed to be the country’s principal counter-terror body after its launch on March 1.
A diverse group of chief ministers, including personalities as politically disparate as Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik and his Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi, said the NCTC’s charter was violative of the federal structure. They questioned the manner in which it was set up without states being taken on board, and demanded that the government reverse the reversed.
The NCTC’s opponents include the chief ministers of Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh-—Nitish Kumar, Mamata Banerjee, J Jayalalithaa, Prem Kumar Dhumal and Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The number is likely to increase. TDP leader N Chandrababu Naidu also joined the protest, calling for the revocation of the notification setting up the NCTC with the objective to improve the country’s response to terror threat.
The Centre has set itself adeadline of 90 days to complete the recruitment process and make the agency fully operational. Patnaik, who was the first to raise the red flag and instrumental in rallying his peers around, said, “My concern is the authoritarian notification with draconian overtones about law and order, among others, in which the state governments have not been consulted.” He, along with Banerjee, has already lodged a strong protest with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Besides their lament against the Centre’s alleged unilateralism, the chief ministers are particularly peeved with the provision that enables the NCTC to carry out arrests as well as searches and seizures across the country, something that, according to satraps, is in conflict with the constitutional scheme where ‘law and order’ is supposed to be the concern of states. Seen through the political prism, the protest is significant because it brings out the potential of a “secular” satrap hoisting an anti-Congress coalition, as well as the willingness of the BJP to go along with the move. This is the third instance in recent times that the Centre is having to deal with opposition arising from concerns about federalism, the two earlier cases being that of Lokpal and FDI in multi-brand retail.
The government, however, rejected the criticism, with Union home secretary R K Singh stressing that the charge of encroachment on states’ powers was not valid. “The body has been set up under an existing law and enjoys powers which are part of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act,” Singh said, as he explained why the Centre did not deem it necessary to consult states. He also said there should be no controversy over a decision which had been taken in “national interest”.
The Congress brushed aside the charge of central overreach, while directing a putdown at the NCTC’s opponents. “Many draconian laws were enacted under the NDA regime,” party spokesperson Renuka Chaudhary said in a clear reference to the enactment of the Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act (Pota) by the NDA. Incidentally, Patnaik and Banerjee were part of the NDA. Official sources said while an effort would be made to allay the CMs’ concerns, there was no question of a change of course. “In fact, the National Investigation Agency, which was set up under a new law, enjoys more powers and was yet supported by states once they recognized that the intent was to fight terror. We are sure that the CMs will see our point of view in this instance as well,” a senior home ministry source said.
Cooperation from states is a pre-requisite for the NCTC to be an effective counter-terror body it is billed to be. A fallout of the national humiliation over the 26/11 Mumbai attack, the body is supposed to prevent similar atrocities by collecting, collating and sharing terror-related inputs which, under the current scheme, often slip through the cracks caused by multiplicity of turf-conscious agencies. The body can also ask for information and all government agencies, even missions abroad, are mandated to comply.
For the same objective of improving the response to terrorism, the NCTC has been empowered to carry out arrests, conduct searches and seizures and launch operations—provisions that seem to be upsetting the CMs the most. Anticipating the sensitivities of states about powers, the Centre has tried to make them stakeholders in the success of the experiment. A standing council comprising the chiefs of the anti-terror wings of all the states and UTs has been conceived as the key decision-making unit in the body.
The protest suggests that the precaution has not addressed the anxiety. In her letter to the PM, Banerjee said, “It is difficult for the state government to accept such arbitrary exercise of power by the central government/central agencies, which have a bearing on the rights and privilege of the states as enshrined in the Constitution of India.” The NCTC derives its contentious powers to arrest and conduct search and seizure operations from Section 43(A) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act that has been on the statute for nearly eight years. Officials who saw the protests as ill-informed as well as politically motivated also stressed that the NCTC would work under the Intelligence Bureau which already has a pan-India jurisdiction.
Interestingly, Banerjee’s letter to the PM was released by Patnaik’s office in Bhubaneswar. Patnaik, earlier this week, had written to non-Congress chief ministers and leaders, including Jayalalitha, Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu, against the Centre’s move. Modi, in his letter to the PM, said the notification constituting the NCTC was a clear violation of the provisions of federal structure and an attack on the rights of states. Demanding that the order be annulled with immediate effect, he said putting all the intelligence agencies under the NCTC would adversely affect the rights given to states for maintenance of law and order.
CHORUS AGAINST COUNTER-TERROR
IN OPPOSITION | Chief ministers Mamata Banerjee, J Jayalalithaa, Naveen Patnaik, Nitish Kumar, Narendra Modi, Shivraj Singh Chauhan, Prem Kumar Dhumal
THEIR ARGUMENT | National Counter-Terrorism Centre’s powers of “arrest, search and seizure” in terror-related cases infringe on states’ powers; Mamata points out all state authorities will have to provide info, documents to NCTC
CENTRE SAYS | Agency created under provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act that have been in effect for past 6-7 years; national interest top priority, NCTC crucial to coordinate agencies fighting terror..................http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=VE9JUFUvMjAxMi8wMi8xOCNBcjAwNDAy&Mode=Gif&Locale=english-skin-custom
Seven CMs up in arms against anti-terror body
Vishwa Mohan |TNN | Feb 18, 2012, 03.24AM IST
New Delhi: The newly set up National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC) has run into strong political resistance with a group of chief ministers coming out in the open to oppose its powers in a development that can trigger serious doubts about the effectiveness of the agency which is billed to be the country’s principal counter-terror body after its launch on March 1.
A diverse group of chief ministers, including personalities as politically disparate as Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik and his Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi, said the NCTC’s charter was violative of the federal structure. They questioned the manner in which it was set up without states being taken on board, and demanded that the government reverse the reversed.
The NCTC’s opponents include the chief ministers of Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh-—Nitish Kumar, Mamata Banerjee, J Jayalalithaa, Prem Kumar Dhumal and Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The number is likely to increase. TDP leader N Chandrababu Naidu also joined the protest, calling for the revocation of the notification setting up the NCTC with the objective to improve the country’s response to terror threat.
The Centre has set itself adeadline of 90 days to complete the recruitment process and make the agency fully operational. Patnaik, who was the first to raise the red flag and instrumental in rallying his peers around, said, “My concern is the authoritarian notification with draconian overtones about law and order, among others, in which the state governments have not been consulted.” He, along with Banerjee, has already lodged a strong protest with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Besides their lament against the Centre’s alleged unilateralism, the chief ministers are particularly peeved with the provision that enables the NCTC to carry out arrests as well as searches and seizures across the country, something that, according to satraps, is in conflict with the constitutional scheme where ‘law and order’ is supposed to be the concern of states. Seen through the political prism, the protest is significant because it brings out the potential of a “secular” satrap hoisting an anti-Congress coalition, as well as the willingness of the BJP to go along with the move. This is the third instance in recent times that the Centre is having to deal with opposition arising from concerns about federalism, the two earlier cases being that of Lokpal and FDI in multi-brand retail.
The government, however, rejected the criticism, with Union home secretary R K Singh stressing that the charge of encroachment on states’ powers was not valid. “The body has been set up under an existing law and enjoys powers which are part of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act,” Singh said, as he explained why the Centre did not deem it necessary to consult states. He also said there should be no controversy over a decision which had been taken in “national interest”.
The Congress brushed aside the charge of central overreach, while directing a putdown at the NCTC’s opponents. “Many draconian laws were enacted under the NDA regime,” party spokesperson Renuka Chaudhary said in a clear reference to the enactment of the Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act (Pota) by the NDA. Incidentally, Patnaik and Banerjee were part of the NDA. Official sources said while an effort would be made to allay the CMs’ concerns, there was no question of a change of course. “In fact, the National Investigation Agency, which was set up under a new law, enjoys more powers and was yet supported by states once they recognized that the intent was to fight terror. We are sure that the CMs will see our point of view in this instance as well,” a senior home ministry source said.
Cooperation from states is a pre-requisite for the NCTC to be an effective counter-terror body it is billed to be. A fallout of the national humiliation over the 26/11 Mumbai attack, the body is supposed to prevent similar atrocities by collecting, collating and sharing terror-related inputs which, under the current scheme, often slip through the cracks caused by multiplicity of turf-conscious agencies. The body can also ask for information and all government agencies, even missions abroad, are mandated to comply.
For the same objective of improving the response to terrorism, the NCTC has been empowered to carry out arrests, conduct searches and seizures and launch operations—provisions that seem to be upsetting the CMs the most. Anticipating the sensitivities of states about powers, the Centre has tried to make them stakeholders in the success of the experiment. A standing council comprising the chiefs of the anti-terror wings of all the states and UTs has been conceived as the key decision-making unit in the body.
The protest suggests that the precaution has not addressed the anxiety. In her letter to the PM, Banerjee said, “It is difficult for the state government to accept such arbitrary exercise of power by the central government/central agencies, which have a bearing on the rights and privilege of the states as enshrined in the Constitution of India.” The NCTC derives its contentious powers to arrest and conduct search and seizure operations from Section 43(A) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act that has been on the statute for nearly eight years. Officials who saw the protests as ill-informed as well as politically motivated also stressed that the NCTC would work under the Intelligence Bureau which already has a pan-India jurisdiction.
Interestingly, Banerjee’s letter to the PM was released by Patnaik’s office in Bhubaneswar. Patnaik, earlier this week, had written to non-Congress chief ministers and leaders, including Jayalalitha, Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu, against the Centre’s move. Modi, in his letter to the PM, said the notification constituting the NCTC was a clear violation of the provisions of federal structure and an attack on the rights of states. Demanding that the order be annulled with immediate effect, he said putting all the intelligence agencies under the NCTC would adversely affect the rights given to states for maintenance of law and order.
CHORUS AGAINST COUNTER-TERROR
IN OPPOSITION | Chief ministers Mamata Banerjee, J Jayalalithaa, Naveen Patnaik, Nitish Kumar, Narendra Modi, Shivraj Singh Chauhan, Prem Kumar Dhumal
THEIR ARGUMENT | National Counter-Terrorism Centre’s powers of “arrest, search and seizure” in terror-related cases infringe on states’ powers; Mamata points out all state authorities will have to provide info, documents to NCTC
CENTRE SAYS | Agency created under provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act that have been in effect for past 6-7 years; national interest top priority, NCTC crucial to coordinate agencies fighting terror..................http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=VE9JUFUvMjAxMi8wMi8xOCNBcjAwNDAy&Mode=Gif&Locale=english-skin-custom
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