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The Times of India
The Times of India
National
U Sudhakar Reddy | TNN

‘Need for insulation of enforcement agencies’

HYDERABAD: The legality of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has to be strengthened with a new Act, said retired DPG and police reforms advocate Prakash Singh, on Wednesday.

In a discussion with retired Supreme Court judge, Justice Jasti Chelameswar, Singh spoke about the need for “insulation of enforcement agencies” for them to “function effectively, dispassionately and impartially”.

“If there is no insulation, then we are all responsible. There is no CBI Act... It came into existence based on a resolution of the home ministry on April 1, 1963. More than 50 years ago, a commission recommended an act to bring legal basis to CBI. No government heeded to this as they wanted the parrot to sing to their tune,” said Singh while referring to his new book ‘The struggle for Police Reforms in India’, at the Osmania University.

He was responding to queries on the alleged abuse of enforcement agencies like CBI, ED at the Centre and ACB, CID and police at the state level for achieving political means. Adding to it Justice Jasti Chelameswar, who chaired the discussion, said how the very legal status of CBI is questionable. “Patna HC has decided that it has no statutory basis. However, the matter ended up in the SC and has been pending for the past 10 years”. While there is some change happening, the pace is slow and a lot needs to be done, he added, speaking about police reforms. “Police reforms can be implemented only with pressure...When something wrong is going on, it is the people who have to step out, speak up, and question the anomolies. Only then things can improve,” he added.

Retired DGP Prakash Singh also stressed how police reforms is the answer to better policing and strengthening of the democracy.

“I have decided to fight for insulation for police officials who are doing things right as per the law. I went to the Supreme Court and got the judgment after a decade. In at least six states on paper, there is a commitment to implement police reforms and in two more states, it is partial. The Centre has to put pressure on states for implementation of police reforms. Around 5% of GDP is lost due to internal conflicts,” he said.

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