Tamil Nadu Withdraws General Consent For CBI, Joins West Bengal, Kerala and Rajasthan

Like in West Bengal, Kerala and Rajasthan, the central probe agency will now have to obtain permission from the Tamil Nadu government before conducting any investigation in the state.

The central probe agency will now have to obtain permission from the Tamil Nadu government before conducting any investigation in the state.

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New Delhi: The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday withdrew its general consent for an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Like in West Bengal, Kerala and Rajasthan, the central probe agency will now have to obtain permission from the Tamil Nadu government before conducting any investigation in the southern state.

The Tamil Nadu government's decision comes in the wake of the ruling DMK’s criticism of the BJP government at the Centre alleging that it is "misusing" central agencies to "silence" Opposition leaders.

He slammed the ruling BJP at the Centre over the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids against his cabinet colleague V Senthil Balaji, charging it with "backdoor intimidation" of political rivals.

The chief minister took strong objection to the ED officials conducting raids at the office room of Balaji at the State Secretariat, saying it was a "blot on federalism."

"The BJP's politics of backdoor intimidation of those it is unable to face politically will not succeed. The time that they themselves will realise it is nearing," CM Stalin said.

The ED raids were carried out at Balaji's premises in state capital Chennai and his native Karur. Apart from these, the ED officials also searched the house of a Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) lorry contractor in Erode district.

The CBI is governed by The Delhi Special Police Establishment Act of 1946 that requires the agency to get permission from the states before it can investigate a crime there. A consent given by the state comes in two forms – general and case-specific. General consent allows CBI to function seamlessly within states. However, if the general consent is withdrawn by any state, then the central agency will have to apply for a consent before it can register any fresh case involving government officials or any individual in that state.