New Delhi:
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has once again taken the row over the National Counter Terrorism Centre or NCTC to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. In a fresh letter written to Dr Singh, his third so far, Mr Patnaik has rejected the Home Secretary's meeting with state police chiefs and heads of anti-terror agencies. Instead, he has asked the PM to convene a meeting of chief ministers opposing the body.
"I am disappointed to find, Sir, that a meeting has been called by the Union Home Secretary with state directors general of police (DGPs)," Mr Patnaik has written in his latest letter.
"The matter relates to national security, terrorism and extremism which require deliberation with us at the highest level. All of us know about the effects of terrorism, the clear examples of which are attacks in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. It is imperative that instead of a meeting chaired by the Union Home Secretary, an immediate meeting of Chief Ministers may be called by you to address the concerns of the states on this very urgent matter regarding the security of the nation," he has further added.
Yesterday, Home Minister P Chidambaram had expressed hope that the row over NCTC would be resolved at the Home Secretary's meeting scheduled to take place on March 9. "The Home Secretary has already convened a meeting of the DGs, the ATS chiefs and the chief secretaries. Therefore I am confident that this meeting will find a way forward. I hope the meeting will allay the fears of the states," he had said.
The National Counter Terrorism Centre or NCTC is Mr Chidambaram's pet project. It was scheduled to be launched on March 1 but was put on hold in the wake of staunch opposition from chief ministers of over 10 states who say they fear that the powers given to the agency would infringe on the rights of the states and hence threaten the country's federal structure. Mr Patnaik, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Jayalalithaa of Tamil Nadu headlined the campaign that forced the Centre to suspend its plans. Ms Banerjee's party, the Trinamool Congress, partners with the ruling Congress at the Centre.
On February 24 last week, the Home Minister had written a letter to the chief ministers opposing the setting up of the NCTC and had assured them that the "next steps" on NCTC would be taken only after the meeting of the DGPs. Following this, the appointments of the Director and three joint Directors of NCTC were also put on hold.