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New Delhi:
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday sought to reach out to seven
of the over 10 chief ministers opposing the proposed National
Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC) in its present format, assuring
extensive consultations and redressing their concerns but stopped
short of putting the decision on hold.
The prime minister also explained to the chief ministers the
purpose of having the institution under the control of the
Intelligence Bureau (IB).
"I noted your concerns and am asking the (union) home minister to
address them suitably in consultation with the chief ministers,"
the prime minister said in his letter to chief ministers of
Tripura, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Gujarat, West Bengal, Bihar and
Madhya Pradesh.
West Bengal is ruled by Trinamool Congress's Mamata Banerjee, a
key ally of the United Progress Alliance at the centre. Other
chief ministers to oppose the move are from the states of Himachal
Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Karnataka and Jharkhand.
"The primary purpose of NCTC is to coordinate counter-terrorism
efforts across the country and it is for this reason that NCTC has
been located within IB and not as a separate organisation," he
said in the three-para letter.
The resistance to the anti-terror intelligence hub, which is the
brainchild of Home Minister P. Chidambaram, continued to grow
after it was first voiced by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
The states' overwhelming opposition for the proposed NCTC was on
the grounds that it will be under the IB, which is out of the
purview of parliamentary oversight, and infringe upon the states'
powers to deal with terrorism.
Meanwhile, government sources said the home ministry was preparing
a dossier on the anti-terror agency that will be forwarded to the
Prime Minister's Office.
"The document is aimed at to clear all the misgivings (on the NCTC)
that have been raised," an official said.
Earlier, IT and Communication Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters
in Lucknow that the government was ready for a dialogue on the
issue.
"If they (state chief ministers) have any concerns, there is no
problem in having a dialogue...If there is any misgiving, no
problem, we can have a dialogue," Sibal said.
The opposition to the NCTC has grown with with various chief
ministers voicing concerns about it because it has powers that
they say will infringe on the rights of states, affecting the
country's federal structure.
The agency, which becomes functional March 1, has the power to
make arrests or searches in terrorism-hit states without seeking
permission from their governments.
On Tuesday, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, the
latest to demand talks on the raging row, did not speak for or
against the NCTC but said there has been no consultation with
state government over it.
"There has been no discussion between state government and the
central government on the issue of NCTC," Abdullah told reporters
at an official function in a Kashmir village.
Asked if he favoured or opposed the government move to create an
anti-terror intelligence hub under the union home ministry,
Abdullah, who rules the state jointly with the Congress, said he
wouldn't share his views publicly.
Sibal in Lucknow said state governments would be represented by
regional centers of the NCTC.
"There is a central council of NCTC. The director and three joint
directors of NCTC and the heads of the anti-terrorist
organisations or forces of each states are represented in it. Each
state is represented. And they look after the overall activities
of the NCTC. So this is the rationale of moving forward," he said.
He said the counter-terror powers that were with the central
government have been given to the agency and there was no new law
that would usurp the powers of states and disturb the federal
structure.
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