Madhya Pradesh govt passes order requiring CBI to seek written consent for investigation in state

The notification to this effect was published on Tuesday.

The order has a retrospective effect as it has been implemented from July 1.

This means the CBI now needs written clearance from the Madhya Pradesh administration to investigate private individuals, government officials, or any entities within the state.

According to Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, the CBI is required to seek consent from a state government to carry out a probe in its jurisdiction.

With this, BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh joins a long list of states, ruled mostly by opposition parties, such as Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Kerala, and Telangana, requiring the CBI to seek permission.

However, in October 2022, the Maharashtra government reversed an earlier order.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, whose Shiv Sena is backed by the BJP and Ajit Pawar's NCP, reversed an order passed by his predecessor, Uddhav Thackeray and the MVA that includes the Congress.

States' directions for the CBI to seek permission before starting an inquiry on its jurisdiction grabbed headlines last year amid allegations by the opposition that the ruling BJP uses federal agencies to target rival political leaders, particularly before an election.

In December last year, the Centre responded sharply to states' actions, insisting that requiring the CBI to ask for permission had severely limited its powers to investigate cases.

A Parliamentary panel said there was a need to enact a law so the agency could probe cases without state "interference".