MHA rejects CMs demand for NCTC legislation

The proposal on National Counter Terrorism Centre is headed for another confrontation with the Home Ministry ruling out suggestions

The proposal on National Counter Terrorism Centre is headed for another confrontation with the Home Ministry ruling out suggestions to bring a legislation for its ratification. The proposed anti-terror body is already facing stiff opposition from non-Congress chief ministers Narendra Modi,Shivraj Singh Chouhan,Mamata Banerjee,Nitish Kumar,J Jayalalithaa and Raman Singh. Even some Congress CMs have apprehensions about it.

The MHAs decision comes in the wake of suggestions made by some CMs who demanded the Centre get the legislation on NCTC passed through the Lok Sabha.

On Wednesday,Bihar CM Nitish Kumar suggested: If the Centre still considers it expedient to form an organisation like the NCTC,it should be done through legislation in Parliament which will ensure a wider debate on the subject.

Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh,who advocated the creation of a national anti-terror body,had also sought its creation through Parliament. The participation of states in the NCTC should not get reflected only on paper. To make it more effective and useful,the states role should be ratified by Parliament, Singh said at the internal security meeting.

In its draft proposal which was circulated days ahead of the internal security meeting,the Centre had said that it has diluted some provisions after objections were raised by CMs last year. Allaying fears of the states,the new draft proposal said that the NCTC,headed by a director general,will report to the MHA and not the IB. It said that operations will be conducted in conjunction with the state police.

However,after the new draft was opposed by the states,Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde assured the CMs that a final outcome on NCTC will be only after a consensus is reached on it.

While rejecting the suggestions to bring in a legislation,the MHA said that it was analysing CMs comments and will take a fresh view on the suggestions. The MHA,however,said that the move to bring Multi Agency Centre MAC within the NCTC,currently functioning under the Intelligence Bureau,was taken after consultation with other stakeholders,including state intelligence units and Anti Terrorism Squads. Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has criticised the move to merge MAC with the NCTC and alleged that the Centre is destroying institutions.