Indian govt repeals 'controversial' Pota

Information Minister S Jaipal Reddy told reporters after a meeting of the cabinet presided by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that a bill repealing the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) would be introduced in the second half of the budget session of Parliament beginning on August 16.

He said another bill would be introduced in Parliament to effect major amendments to the existing Unlawful Activities Act of 1967 in order to maintain a tight grip on terrorists and their funding network.

The POTA was enacted in a rare joint sitting of Parliament on March 26, 2002 during the rule of BJP-led government amidst stiff resistance from Congress and other opposition parties at that time. The opposition had alleged at that time that the law would be used against political rivals.

However, the POTA was not enforced in more than half of India's 26 states and federally-ruled territories. A total of 301 cases involving 1600 people were filed under the law.

Among the key politicians held under POTA was Vaiko, the chief of Murchi Dravida Munnetra Kazghakham (MDMK), a party in the southern state of Tamil Nadu and a constituent of UPA. Vaiko was arrested on the charge of publicly speaking in favor of Sri Lankan separatist outfit LTTE. Many other people were also arrested under the law in Gujarat after the communal riots in that state in 2002.

Reddy said amendments to the Unlawful Activities Act would address concerns of national security including funding of terrorist groups.

When the BJP-led government had enacted the POTA, it had also set up independent review committees to scrutinize all arrests made under the law in order to ensure that it was not misused. Later, as a further safeguard, the government had made mandatory recommendations of the review committees about the arrests under the law.