The Contours Of Suo Motu Action Within The Ambit Of Section 6 Of The National Investigation Agency Act’ 2008
Ipsita Agarwal, Litigating lawyer based out of Delhi, practicing at the chambers of Mr. Shri Singh
Introduction
The Indian Constitution postulates a scheme for demarcation of powers between the centre and the states through the three ‘lists’ in its Seventh Schedule and policing falls under the purview of the state governments. However, in the aftermath of the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai, a need was felt for establishing a federal agency dedicated towards tackling terrorism and related threats to national security such as human trafficking, cyber-crimes and the use of restricted explosives. This led to the creation of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which falls under the Ministry of Home Affairs and is the country’s premier counter terrorism task force entrusted with investigating and prosecuting offences listed in a schedule to the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008 (Act). The NIA is a high octane agency empowered to declare individuals and organisations as terrorists/ terrorist organisations.
The Act calls for the creation of Special Courts presided over by Sessions judges for trying scheduled offences and provides broadly two ways in which the investigation of such offences can be undertaken by the NIA. First, in cases where an FIR has been registered by the state police and it is felt that it relates to the commission of a Scheduled Offence, such a report is forwarded to the State Government which on subject satisfaction, forwards the same to the Central Government. The Central Government independently evaluates the material placed before it and on satisfaction marks the case to the NIA. Second, as per Section 6(5) of the Act1, the Central Government also has suo motu powers to direct the NIA to undertake investigation in a matter where it is of an opinion a scheduled offence has been committed.
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