Kerala on Wednesday joined the list of states of West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra not governed by the BJP to withdraw its general consent given to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The decision, which was on the table for quite some time, was finalized at the Cabinet meeting. From now on, the investigating agency will need to request prior permission from the state government before registering a case with the state.
Recently, the Maha Vikas Aghadi government of Maharashtra decided to block the CBI in the statistics. The decision caused quite a stir when it was announced a day after CBI decided to investigate the TRP scam in Maharashtra. The state government is at a critical juncture in which it is waging several wars against the Center. CBI’s blockade of the state was therefore seen as a salvo against the Center that raised questions about the Mumbai Police investigation into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput.
CBI is governed by the DSPE Act and requires states to grant the agency blanket consent to act against central government employees within a state, as law enforcement and law enforcement are dependent on state governments, which renew this permission. routinely.
In late 2018, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh withdrew blanket consent to CBI for investigations, claiming that the Center was misusing the agency to harass opponents. However, the government of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, who came to power in Andhra 2019, reversed the decision.
Chhattisgarh, ruled by Congress, withdrew blanket consent to CBI in January 2019. And in July 2020, the Ashok Gehlot-led government in Rajasthan did the same.
The Kerala government and the CBI disagree due to the latter’s ongoing investigation into Life Mission, a state housing project for the homeless. The CBI was investigating alleged irregularities in this project. In October, Kerala’s high court suspended the CBI investigation considering a statement from the state government.
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