Proposal to extend law to deter organised crime in Delhi sent to Centre

Officials aware of the matter on Friday said after the Union home ministry extends the law, it will empower police to make preventive detentions

Lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena has approved and forwarded a Delhi Police proposal to the Centre for extending the Telangana Prevention of Dangerous Activities Act with provisions such as preventive detention to the national capital to deter organised crime, sexual offences, land grabbing, chain snatching, etc.

Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. (ANI/ file photo)

Officials aware of the matter on Friday said after the Union home ministry extends the law, it will empower police to make preventive detentions of boot-leggers, drug offenders, immoral traffic offenders, land grabbers, food adulters, fake document makers, scheduled commodities offenders, gaming offenders, sexual offenders, explosive substances offenders, arms offenders, and cybercrime offenders. The law also covers white-collar or financial offenders.

The Centre exercises executive powers related to land, the police, and public order with respect to the National Capital Territory of Delhi. The Union home ministry will take a final decision on extending the Telangana law.

There was no immediate reaction to the move from Delhi’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, which has been at loggerheads with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government over the boundaries of the legislative powers in the national capital.

The Delhi Police in June sought approval for extending the law citing “a need for stringent legislation for the prevention and effective control” of criminal activities. It said there was a need to particularly check repeat offenders involved in bootlegging, land grabbing, snatching, robbery, arms running, sale of drugs, gambling, and sexual offences.

HT has reached out to the Delhi Police for comment about extending the law, which is considered to have been effective. The law provides for the preventive detentions of criminals and members of organised syndicates, whose activities affect or are likely to impact the maintenance of public order.

According to the Union Territories (Laws) Act, 1950, the Centre may by notification in the official gazette extend to Delhi any law in force in other states with any restrictions and modifications as it deems fit.

An official said the Telangana law seeks to prevent any misuse by providing for an advisory board to ratify detentions and their extension under the legislation. All detentions are subject to ratification.

In the event the board does not ratify any detention, a detainee can be released. The period for such detention in the first instance cannot exceed three months. The maximum period of detention shall not be over 12 months.

The official said the government has to within three weeks of a detention place the matter before the board in every such case under this law. The board has judges or those qualified to be appointed as high court judges as members.