Fears of police state are unfounded, says home department

The state government has spoken out against fears that the proposed Maharashtra Protection of Internal Security Act (MPISA) will give the state police undue powers and bring about a situation akin to the Emergency.

Maharashtra is the first state to propose such an act. The draft law, a document made at bureaucratic level of the home department, was posted on the government website on August 19, awaiting suggestions and objections from citizens.

There are concerns that certain points could restrict people's movement or their right to protest. For instance, the current draft proposes that permission will have to be sought for a gathering of 100 or more persons. In view of this, activists and opposition parties have accused the BJP government of trying to use new legislation to suppress activism and political activity against the government.

'Unfounded fears'
During a press conference yesterday, however, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) KP Bakshi said such fears were unfounded. "People who are debating pros and cons of the draft law have not read the text carefully before airing their opinion," he said.

He said people's rights would be protected by existing laws, such as the industrial dispute law, which will allow all kinds of democratic agitations by aggrieved employees. "The new law, if it comes into force, will not hamper any social, private or cultural activity. People will be continue to use all democratic ways, but they will not be allowed to resort to violence (as per the existing Indian Penal Code)," he said.

Bakshi pointed out that the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) had met with much resistance in 1999, "But the same law is very useful. People and public representatives cutting across party lines now recommend that MCOCA be applied," the senior bureaucrat added.

The officer said that the law would not only help the police but also people in general, and it would be useful to tackle law and order issues that were emerging from the growing urbanisation. The law would help secure the state's porous coastal line of 720km and tackle terrorism effectively, he said, adding that Mumbai stands to benefit the most from it, because the city has important political, financial and defence/research installations. "The metro's footfall is more than any other city, including New Delhi," he said.

The home secretary assured that every suggestion and objection will be studied carefully to understand the public opinion about the draft law. "The final draft will be taken before the Cabinet and then legislature for debate."

When asked why the Opposition was not taken into confidence before drafting the law, Bakshi said that no government, including Mahara-shtra, takes the Opposition on board when it comes to matters of internal security.

Want to know more?
At present, a rough draft is posted on the Maharashtra government website, where citizens can send in their suggestions and objections for three weeks. These inputs will be considered by the cabinet before preparing the final draft of the law.

The draft
>> MPISA proposes setting up Special Security Zones (SSZ) such as major projects, ports, dams, nuclear reactors and coastal areas and major defence installations
>> At these zones, the movement of arms, explosives and inflow of unaccounted funds will be prohibited
>> The law will make every person/institution concerned a stakeholder in managing internal security of the state
>> SSZ will have a command and control system, and a Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) to be followed by the SSZ police
>> Police chief will have powers to ban or regulate the "production, sale, storage, possession, or entry of any devices or equipment or poisonous chemical, biological or radioactive article or substances, or electronic content"
>> CCTV installation will be mandatory at important locations
>> Security audits will be mandatory at man important institutions and installations