The Union Ministry of Home & Affairs has amended its July 3, 2014 notification to extend the jurisdiction of Border Security Forces (BSF) from existing 15 km to 50 km inside the international border in Assam, West Bengal and Punjab which share borders with Bangladesh and Pakistan respectively.
The BSF was raised in December 1965 as a specialized force to guard India’s international border.
The decision was taken in the wake of an increasing number of cases of cattle and drug smuggling and Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) racket alongside the international borders. Drug and arms smuggling has emerged as a new challenge in Punjab whereas Assam and West Bengal are the hotbeds of cattle smuggling, FICN, and illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya migration.
The ministry, empowered under Section 139 of the Border Security Force Act 1968 to revise operational areas of BSF, has said that it will improve the operational efficiency of the BSF to crack down on smuggling rackets.
As per the gazette notification issued on Monday, BSF will now have the power to carry search, seizure and arrest within 50 km from the borders in these states under Acts namely Criminal Procedure Code, Passport Act, NDPS Act and Customs Act. BSF has been given similar power of search and arrest in other North-Eastern states namely Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur, Nagaland and Meghalaya besides UTs of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
On the other hand, the jurisdiction of BSF in Gujarat has been reduced from 80 km to 50 km and no change has been made in Rajasthan where BSF continues to guard 50 km radius area.
The basic idea was to bring uniformity in the area of operation in states sharing international borders. The vast swathe of Gujarat sharing the international border is the Rann of Kutch, which is uninhabited, hence such a large operational area is not required.
But as usual, Punjab and West Bengal ruled by the Congress and Trinamool Congress (TMC) have started protesting the decision as an attack on federalism and interference through Central agencies.
“I strongly condemn the GoI’s unilateral decision to give additional powers to BSF within the 50 km belt running along the international borders, which is a direct attack on federalism. I urge the Union Home Minister to immediately roll back this irrational decision,” Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi tweeted.
I strongly condemn the GoI’s unilateral decision to give additional powers to BSF within 50 KM belt running along the international borders, which is a direct attack on the federalism. I urge the Union Home Minister @AmitShah to immediately rollback this irrational decision.
— Charanjit S Channi (@CHARANJITCHANNI) October 13, 2021
Congress MP Manish Tewari wondered that by this decision “half of Punjab will now fall under BSF jurisdiction”. Punjab Home Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said that an internal emergency has been imposed and the patriotism of Punjabis is doubted.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Caption Amarinder Singh rebuffs Punjab CM and Congress
But former Punjab Chief Minister Caption Amarinder Singh rubbished these allegations and asked the chief minister and the Congress party not to drag central forces into politics.
He said that the enhanced power and presence of BSF will save Punjab and make the state stronger. Our soldiers are being killed in Kashmir. We are seeing more and more weapons and drugs being pushed by Pak-backed terrorists into Punjab. Let’s not drag central armed forces into politics,” he said
Captain Amarinder Singh’s media advisor Raveen Thukral posted two tweets back to back on his behalf making it clear that the he stands with security forces.
‘Our soldiers are being killed in Kashmir. We’re seeing more & more weapons & drugs being pushed by Pak-backed terrorists into Punjab. BSF’s enhanced presence & powers will only make us stronger. Let’s not drag central armed forces into politics’: capt_amarinder 1/2
— Raveen Thukral (@RT_Media_Capt) October 13, 2021
(File pic) pic.twitter.com/nu4DhAQnAz
He further said, “Partisan considerations can’t & shouldn’t dictate our stand on issues of national security. I’d said that at the time of the 2016 surgical strikes & am saying it again. We’ve to rise above politics when India’s security is at stake, as it is now.”
‘Partisan considerations can’t & shouldn’t dictate our stand on issues of national security. I’d said that at the time of the 2016 surgical strikes & am saying it again. We’ve to rise above politics when India’s security is at stake, as it is now’: @capt_amarinder
— Raveen Thukral (@RT_Media_Capt) October 13, 2021
(File pic) 2/2 pic.twitter.com/TAvZi4pqtT
West Bengal Transport Minister Firhad Hakim accused the federal structure of the country has been violated by extending the operational area of BSF. He said that law and order is a state subject which the Central government is trying to interfere with through central agencies.
However, there are obvious reasons as the Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party have been opposing the Indian Army, BSF, CRPF and any other central security agencies. In December 2016 she had staged 33 hours long political drama on a normal security exercise of the Indian Army. Besides, her government has been accused of protecting illegal immigration, cattle smuggling and likes.
