National Investigation Agency (NIA)-PRELIMS The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is a central counter-terrorism agency under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. National Investigation Agency The NIA is the central counter-terrorism law enforcement agency in the country. It was created in 2008 after the Mumbai terror attack the same year. • The NIA can investigate terror cases across the country without having to get permission from the states. • The agency investigates terror offences, waging war against the country, offences on nuclear facilities, etc. • It came into force after the Parliament passed the National Investigation Agency Act 2008. • The agency’s aim is to become a professional investigating agency matching global standards. • It also aims at being a deterrent for existing and potential terrorists, apart from being a store house of information on terrorism. • The NIA functions under the Home Affairs Ministry. • The agency is headquartered in New Delhi and has 8 regional offices across India. • It is headed by a Director-General (an IPS officer). • The NIA maintains the ‘NIA Most Wanted List’. National Investigation Agency – Regional Offices • NIA Hyderabad • NIA Guwahati • NIA Kochi • NIA Lucknow • NIA Mumbai • NIA Kolkata • NIA Raipur • NIA Jammu NIA Mission The stated missions of the NIA are as follows: • Investigate professionally the scheduled offences utilising the latest scientific methods. • Facilitating a speedy and effective trial. • Becoming a result-oriented and professional organisation, that upholds the Indian Constitution and the law of the land, and that gives utmost importance to human rights and dignity. • Creating a professional workforce through the means of regular training and best practices exposure. • Showing scientific temper and a spirit of progress while discharging their duties. • Ushering in the latest technology and modern methods in the activities of the NIA. • Having cordial relations with the central and state governments, and other law enforcement agencies of the country. www.pragnyaias.com 7288081111
• Helping the states and other agencies with the investigation of terror-related cases. • Create and share with states and other agencies a database of all information to terrorists. • Analysing terrorism-related laws in India and periodically reviewing them and suggesting any required changes. • Win the citizens’ confidence by means of fearless and selfless efforts. National Investigation Agency – Jurisdiction The agency has been empowered with all the powers and privileges to conduct investigations under the various acts specified in the Schedule book of NIA act. State government authorities can request an investigation by NIA upon approval of Central government within the limits of law specified under the NIA Act. The central government can handover cases for investigation to NIA anywhere in India and the officials involved in the handling of these cases are from the IPS and IRS cadre. NIA (Amendment) Act 2019 The NIA (Amendment) Act 2019 was passed by the Parliament and received the presidential assent in July 2019. This Act has made a few major changes to the original NIA Act of 2008. The changes are discussed below: • The amendment allows the agency to investigate the following new offences as well: o Human trafficking o Counterfeit currency or bank notes related offences o Sale or manufacture of prohibited arms o Offences under the Explosive Substances Act, 1908 o Cyberterrorism • The amendment also expands the jurisdiction of the NIA. Now, it has the authority to investigate offences that are committed outside Indian territory subject to international treaties and domestic laws of other nations. • The amendment also allows the central government to constitute Special Courts to conduct trials of scheduled offences. o Accordingly, the government will have the power to designate Sessions Courts as Special Courts, after consulting with the Chief Justice of the High Court (under which the Sessions Court functions). o The Act also authorises the state governments to designate Special Courts. o The Government can appoint more than Special Court in an area. o Currently, there are 38 Special NIA Courts across the states and 7 across the UTs. o The Special Courts’ judges are appointed by the GOI in consultation with the High Court Chief Justices of the area. o The trials of the NIA Special Courts have precedence over the trial of the accused in any other case in any other court. MAINS: National Investigation Agency
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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) was constituted under the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Act, 2008. ▪ It is a central agency to investigate and prosecute offences: o affecting the sovereignty, security and integrity of India, security of State, friendly relations with foreign States. o against atomic and nuclear facilities. o smuggling in High-Quality Counterfeit Indian Currency. ▪ It implements international treaties, agreements, conventions and resolutions of the United Nations, its agencies and other international organisations. ▪ It’s objective is also to combat terror in India. ▪ It acts as the Central Counter-Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency. ▪ Headquarters: New Delhi o Branches: Hyderabad, Guwahati, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Raipur and Jammu. Goals of NIA ▪ To execute in-depth professional investigation of scheduled offences using the latest scientific methods of investigation. ▪ Upholding the constitution of India and laws of the land. ▪ Prime importance to the protection of Human Rights and dignity of the individual. ▪ Developing a professional workforce through regular training and exposure to the best practices and procedures. ▪ Ensuring effective and speedy trial. ▪ Maintaining professional and cordial relations with the governments of States and Union Territories and other law enforcement agencies in compliance with the legal provisions of the NIA Act. o Assist all States and other investigating agencies in the investigation of terrorist cases. o Build a database of all terrorist-related information and share the database available with the States and other agencies. ▪ Study and analyse laws relating to terrorism in other countries and regularly evaluate the adequacy of existing laws in India and propose changes as and when necessary. Scheduled Offences ▪ The schedule to the Act specifies a list of offences which are to be investigated and prosecuted by the NIA. ▪ These include offences under Acts such as the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967. Need of NIA ▪ The terrorist incidents are found to have complex inter-State and international linkages, and possible connection with organised crime, for example, the smuggling of arms and drugs, circulation of fake Indian currency etc. o The agency at the Central level was created for investigation of offences related to terrorism and certain other Act post-2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Mandate of NIA www.pragnyaias.com 7288081111
▪ The cases are assigned to the NIA by the Central Government in accordance with section VI of the NIA Act, 2008. ▪ The investigation of the cases is done by the Agency independently. ▪ After investigation, the cases are placed before the NIA Special Court. ▪ For prosecuting the accused under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) and certain other scheduled offences, the Agency seeks the sanction of the Central Government. • The sanction is granted under the UAPA based on the report of the ‘Authority’ constituted under section 45 (2) of the UAPA. ▪ It is empowered to deal with terror-related crimes across states without special permission from the states. Smuggling and Terror Funding ▪ The amendments to the NIA Act has brought the offences related to the smuggling in High-Quality Counterfeit Indian Currency under the definition of a terrorist Act. ▪ To curb various aspects of terrorist financing, a Terror Funding and Fake Currency Cell (TFFC) has been created in the NIA. o The Cell maintains a database of terror financing and cases of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN). o TFFC also conducts a part investigation into terror financing aspects of regular cases investigated by the NIA. o TFFC Cell conducts verifications of bank accounts of the suspects that are linked with Naxalite groups. ▪ There is an exclusive Left Wing Extremism (LWE) cell to effectively deal with cases related to terror financing aspects of Naxalite groups. ▪ The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) reviews the manpower, financial and infrastructure requirements of NIA from time to time. Recent Amendment ▪ The NIA (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was passed by Parliament amending the original Act of 2008. ▪ The Bill seeks to allow the NIA to investigate the following additional offences: o Human trafficking o Offences related to counterfeit currency or banknotes o Manufacture or sale of prohibited arms o Cyber-terrorism, and o Offences under the Explosive Substances Act, 1908 ▪ Jurisdiction of the NIA o The officers of the NIA have the same powers as other police officers in relation to the investigation of such offences, across India. o The officers of the NIA will have the power to investigate scheduled offences committed outside India, subject to international treaties and domestic laws of other countries.
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o The central government may direct the NIA to investigate such cases as if the offence has been committed in India. o The Special Court in New Delhi will have jurisdiction over these cases. Special Courts ▪ The Central Government for the trial of Scheduled Offences, constitute one or more Special Courts under Section 11 and 22 of the NIA Act 2008. ▪ Composition: Special Court shall be presided over by a judge to be appointed by the Central Government on the recommendation of the Chief Justice of the High Court. o The Central Government may, if required, appoint an additional judge or additional judges to the Special Court, on the recommendation of the Chief Justice of the High Court. ▪ Jurisdiction of Special Courts: o The Special Courts have all powers of the court of sessions under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. o Where any question arises as to the jurisdiction of any Special Court, it shall be referred to the Central Government whose decision in the matter shall be final. o The Supreme Court can transfer a case pending before a Special Court to any other Special Court within that State or any other State in some exceptional cases where it is not feasible to conduct a peaceful, fair, impartial and speedy trial. • Similarly, the High Court has the power to transfer a case pending before a Special Court in a State to any other Special Court within that State. Issues in the Recent Amendments ▪ Under schedule VII of the Constitution, the maintenance of public order and police forces are matters of state list. o However, Criminal law forms part of the concurrent list and national security comes under the domains of union list. ▪ The Central government gets the authority to have the NIA take over the investigation of crimes, which involve allegations of human trafficking, offences under the Explosives Act, and certain offences under the Arms Act. o However, not every criminal offence in the above act is a threat to national security and sovereignty and consequently, states have the competence to deal with the same. ▪ The Amendment Bill puts Section 66F of the Information Technology Act into the Schedule listing offences. o Section 66F deals with cyber terrorism. o But India does not have a data protection act and there is no definition of cyber terrorism. ▪ The amendment to the NIA Act also gives the agency authority to investigate crimes committed by persons which are against Indian citizens or “affecting the interest of India”. o However, the term “affecting the interest of India” is undefined and can be misused by governments to curb freedom of speech and expression. www.pragnyaias.com 7288081111
• Further, the laws, under which the NIA has the authority to investigate, themselves do not mention “affecting the interest of India” as an offence. CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AND INVESTIGATIVE AGENCIES IN INDIA ADDITIONAL INFORMATION National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) In 2012, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) had given the approval to set up the National Counter Terrorism Center. It is a proposed on the base of the anti-terrorism unit set up in the National counter- terrorism center of the USA. The chief of the National Counter Terrorism Center will be a Director who will be reporting to the Director Intelligence Bureau and the Home Secretary. It will draw its powers from the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act 1967. It will set up small offices crosswise over states to gather the real-time information. It additionally has the ability to look for data, including archives, report and digital data from any security agency and organization. They can conduct and raids without a prior consent of the respective states. The suggestion has met with criticism from the Chief Ministers of different states as they see this as the means of deteriorating India’s federalism and centre-state relations. Intelligence Bureau (IB) India’s intelligence Bureau of investigation is the reputed and established intelligence agency. The intelligence bureau is authoritatively controlled by the Ministry of Home affairs. The Director IB (DIB), who is a member of the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), is the chief of Intelligence Bureau. It is considered as the internal news agency responsible for monitoring all aspects of governance. It is entrusted with counter- intelligence terrorism. Intelligence Bureau closely monitors developments relating to parliamentary undertakings and report back to cabinet secretariat. The Special Enquiry and Surveillance Unit (SES) of the intelligence bureau handle most of this work. Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) At the beginning, Research and Analysis Wing used to appoint people only from the Intelligence Bureau, Indian Police Services, and Indian military or revenue departments. Prior to 1968, the Intelligence Bureau is responsible for India’s internal and external intelligence. Thereafter India, established a dedicated, RAW- Research and Analysis Wing founded mainly to keep an eye on the actions and movements Pakistan and China. The Chief of the RAW is entitled as Secretary (Research) in the Cabinet Secretariat. It is only answerable to the Prime Minister and the Joint Intelligence Committee. It is not liable to the parliament of India on any issues and the same provision keeps it out of reach of the Right to Information (RTI) act. It monitors the political and military development in the neighbouring countries, which have a direct bearing on India’s national security and in the genesis of its foreign policy. Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the principal investigative police agency in India. It was established in 1941 as the Special Police Establishment, entrusted with domestic security. It is an elite force which plays an indispensable role in public life and guaranteeing the health of the national economy. www.pragnyaias.com 7288081111
It is functioning under the Ministry of Personnel, Pension and Public Grievances is the nodal police agency in India which coordinates investigation on behalf of Interpol Member countries. It is also occupied in the compilation of criminal intelligence pertaining to three of its main areas of operation- Anti-Corruption, Economic Crimes, and Special Crimes. It may inspect: ● The cases that are fundamentally against Central Government employees or concerning undertakings of the Central Government ● The cases in which the monetary interests of the Central Government are included. ● The instances of deception, fraud, cheating, misappropriation relating to companies in which huge funds are included and comparable different situations when carried out by organized gangs or expert lawbreakers having ramifications in a few States. ● The cases having interstate and international consequences and including a few official agencies. ● The cases relating to the ruptures of Central Laws with the enforcement of which the Government of India is mainly concerned. MAC is a multi-agency center for Counter Terrorism formed during Kargil War, whose mandate is to share terrorism-related inputs on a day to day basis. It was created at Delhi and Subsidiary, Multi-Agency Centers (SMACs) in different states comprising representatives from various security agencies, for streamlining intelligence efforts. National Investigative Agencies (NIA) The National Investigate Agency was created by an Act of the Parliament of India in 2008. It was created after the Mumbai Terror Attack with the provisions for taking up particular cases under particular Acts for investigation and prosecution. It may be believed to strife with the duty that is solely to the states; however, it can’t be definitively said that the Agency is unconstitutional. It was not an Agency to deal with offenses under all the laws. This agency only deals with eight laws as mentioned below: 1. The Atomic Energy Act, 1962 2. The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 3. The Anti-Hijacking Act, 1982 4. The Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Civil Aviation Act, 1982 5. The SAARC Convention (Suppression of Terrorism) Act, 1993 6. The Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms on Continental Shelf Act, 2002 7. The Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Act, 2005 8. Offenses under—Chapter VI of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 489-A to 489-E (both inclusive) of the Indian Penal Code. National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) The National Intelligence Grid or NATGRID was proposed in the repercussion of the terrorist attack on Mumbai in 2008. It is the integrated intelligence framework connecting the databases of security agencies of the Government of India to gather inclusive patterns of intelligence that can be accessed by intelligence agencies. These data can be accessed by central agencies, including RAW, Intelligence Bureau, CBI, etc. The office of NATGRID is attached to the Ministry of Home Affairs. It faced opposition on charges of possible infringement of privacy and spillage of confidential individual data. National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) www.pragnyaias.com 7288081111
National Crime Record Bureau is to empower Indian Police with Information Technology to allow them to efficiently enforce the law and perk up public service delivery. It is responsible for collecting and dissecting crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Narcotics Control Bureau is the supreme coordinating agency, chief law enforcement, and intelligence agency of India accounts for battling drug trafficking and the mishandling of unlawful and illegal substances. As indicated in the Article 47 of the Indian Constitution, it guides the State to endeavour to bring about the exclusion of the consumption, except for medicinal purposes, of intoxicating drugs harmful to wellbeing. The Director General of NCB is an officer of the Indian Police Service or the Indian Revenue Service. Headquarters is located in Delhi. Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) Directorate of Revenue Intelligence is an Indian intelligence agency the Central Board of Excise and Customs in the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue. It enforces the prohibition of smuggling of drugs, gold, diamonds, electronic gadgets, foreign currency, counterfeit Indian currency, etc. Bureau of Police Research and Investigation (BPR&D) The Bureau of Police Research and Investigation (BPR&D) was set up in 1970 to identify the requirements and issues of police in the nation, to embrace proper research activities and contemplates and to propose strategy choices to rising challenges. It was also ordered to stay informed concerning most recent advancement in the field of science and technology. It has also organized training programs for Prison Officers on various subjects like Human rights in Prison management, personality development etc.
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