SHILLONG:
Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, on March 4, said that it’s a “normal thing” for a state to withdraw general consent to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
“A lot of states have done that before. If anybody wants to come in, the state’s consent is a must. It is a normal procedure,” the chief minister said, adding that the decision was made a long time ago.
Meanwhile, All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) and leader of opposition, Mukul Sangma said that the background of the circumstances leading to this decision will have to be looked into. “…whether there are some reasons which have prompted the government to take this decision or otherwise,” he said.
The leader of opposition also said that the state has to have options when the government goes into any alleged irregularities or corruption through an inquiry.
“Therefore, CBI always provides you an option to create that kind of trust in the minds of the public that the government means business and there is no reason to doubt their sincerity and commitment,” Sangma added.
He also said that, now that the government has withdrawn the general consent to the CBI, one will have to look at how it responds to demands of independent inquiries into alleged irregularities or corruption.
Earlier on March 3, Meghalaya became the ninth state in the country to withdraw general consent to the CBI which implies that now, the CBI will not be able to register any fresh case involving officials of the central government or a private person in the state without the consent of the state government.