Parliamentary panel recommends new law to define power, functions of CBI

Source: The post is based on the article “Parliamentary panel recommends new law to define power, functions of CBI” published in The Hindu on 25th March 2023

What is the News?

The Parliamentary standing committee on personnel, public grievances, law and justice has submitted its recommendations on the Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI).

What is the Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI)?

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What are the recommendations given by the Parliamentary Committee on the functioning of CBI?

Enact a new law: According to the provisions of the Delhi Special Police Establishment(DSPE) Act, the consent of the state government is a prerequisite for any investigation by the CBI and as of date, nine states have withdrawn the general consent.

– The committee said that the DSPE Act has many limitations and therefore, recommends that there is a need to enact a new law.

— The new law should define the status, functions and powers of the CBI and also lay down safeguards to ensure objectivity and impartiality in its functioning.

Fill up Vacant posts: Vacant posts in the CBI are not being filled up at the required pace. For instance, a total of 1,709 posts are vacant in the CBI against its sanctioned strength of 7,295.

– The committee recommended that every effort should be made to fill up vacancies at the earliest.

– It also said that the director of CBI should monitor the progress made in filling up vacancies on a quarterly basis and take necessary measures to ensure that the organization is sufficiently staffed.

Bring in Transparency: The committee ​​said that the details of cases registered with the CBI, the progress made in their investigation and the final outcome are not available in the public domain.

– It also observed that the annual report of CBI is also not accessible to the general public.

– Therefore, it recommended the CBI to publish case statistics and annual reports on its website.