Tamil Nadu has withdrawn its general consent accorded to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday, June 14. The move comes amid heightened conflict between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Union government, following the arrest of state Minister V Senthil Balaji by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a cash-for-job scam. This makes Tamil Nadu the eleventh state to withdraw general consent to CBI. While the central agency can still probe cases and conduct searches in the state, they will now need prior permission from the state government.
Telangana and Kerala are the other states in south India that have withdrawn their general consent to the CBI so far. Andhra Pradesh too had previously withdrawn its consent to the CBI under the previous Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government in November 2018, after Naidu left the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). However, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) reversed this decision after coming to power in 2019, restoring CBI’s powers in the state. Other non-BJP-ruled states like West Bengal and Rajasthan too have withdrawn general consent to the CBI in the recent past. The list of such states also includes Meghalaya, Maharashtra, Punjab, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram.
The CBI derives its powers to investigate from the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act, 1946 which grants the CBI power to investigate a case in Delhi, without any permission, since it falls under the Union government. However, in all the states, since law and order is a state subject, the CBI needs the consent of the state to investigate any case relating to that state or having the state’s jurisdiction.
Watch: TN Minister Senthil Balaji arrested by ED