PIL on NCTC in Madras High Court

CHENNAI: A PIL fi led in Madras High Court has assailed the proposed National Counter Terrorism Centre and charged that instead of concentrating on modernisation of security forces, the Centre was empowering itself with “stone-age authority derived from obsolete and repealed enactments”. When the PIL petition fi led by city lawyer S Vijayalakshmi came up for hearing on Wednesday , a Division Bench comprising justices Elipe Dharma Rao and N Kirubakaran declined to pass any interim order and told the court registry to post the matter before the First Bench headed by Chief Justice M Y Eqbal. Attacking the National Counter Terrorism Centre (Organisation, Functions, Powers and Duties) Order, 2012, the petitioner claimed that the proposed centre had no cadre of its own, and instead proposed to borrow its strength from existing entities, which were bound to continue their allegiance and loyalties to their parent force. The petitioner’s counsel said the Centre had not consulted state governments, many of whom had voiced their opposition to the proposal. The Centre was trying to create it through an “undated executive order,” whereas the Bill introduced in Parliament itself did not have the details the executive order had, he alleged and urged the court to stay operation of the impugned order.