“Why not use Money Laundering Act to trap black money abroad?” “How could other nations dictate arms sales to States?” “Why enmities with a progressive and peaceful state like Gujarat?”
-- Narendra Modi asks Centre at National Security Council
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today posed several incisive questions before the Central Government, notably the latter's inimical attitude towards a progressive and peaceful state like Gujarat.
Addressing the Chief Ministers' National Security Council meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the chair, Mr. Modi said that on the one hand the Union Home Ministry quotes National Crime Record Bureau to praise Gujarat for its peaceful law-and-order situation, but at the same time the PMO-controlled CBI is trying to mislead the Supreme Court with false statements to malign Gujarat.
As to how the Centre misuses the CBI as in leveling charges about the state's cooperative banks' alleged fraud currency notes, he said, when Gujarat asked for the details the CBI refused that it ever fed the media about such news.
Mr. Modi also criticized the Centre's step motherly treatment to Gujarat in buying arms from abroad. The Centre suggested the states buy arms from Turkey when Germany and Austria refused arms sales to states like Andhra, Orissa and Punjab citing misuse of the arms as the reason. He asked as to how other nations could interfere into India's internal security matters.
He also asked as to why the Centre did not invoke the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to get back black money stacked in Swiss banks, as that money pose danger to India's security. The Union Home Money in its agenda note in rules 1.7, 1.8 and 1.9, suggests the states to use the same Act in preventing economic offences.
Referring to the growing incidence of terror and Naxal related violence, Mr. Modi asked the Centre to take the Naxal-affected states into confidence to tackle the issue of national security on a top priority. He said that Gujarat has suggested setting up NSG Centre and Regional Intelligence Centre, Fishermen Territorial Army and Vessel Traffic Monitoring System, necessary for a border state, two years back but has yet to get the Centre's nod.
The Chief Minister also criticized the Centre for reducing the annual amount for modernization of police forces from Rs.120-crore to Rs.47-crore over the last ten years. He also asked for clear cut policies from the Supreme Court regarding its judgment on Police Reforms, establishing that State Legislative Assemblies are the supreme organsations for the same.
