Increase parliamentary oversight on Indian intelligence agencies: Congress MP
The former Union minister on Friday pushed for his private member bill on this issue to be passed by Parliament.
Senior Congress parliamentarian Manish Tewari has called for “increased parliamentary oversight” of India’s intelligence agencies amid US federal agency FBI issuing an arrest warrant for Vikash Yadav, a former Indian intelligence official charged with murder-for-hire and money laundering related to a plot against pro-Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
The former Union minister on Friday pushed for his private member bill on this issue to be passed by Parliament.
“During the budget session of 2011, I had first moved a private member’s bill, which was a very exhaustive, comprehensive, holistic exercise in order to set our intelligence structures on a legal footing and provide for Parliamentary oversight,” Tewari said.
The private member bill, freshly introduced by Tewari in August 2024 in the Lok Sabha titled “Intelligence Services (Powers and Regulation) Bill, 2024” aimed to provide a structured legal framework for India’s intelligence agencies — RAW, IB, and NTRO — ”ensuring accountability and protecting citizens’ rights””
One of the proposed rules under Tewari’s bill called for the establishment of the National Intelligence Tribunal. It said that the National Intelligence Tribunal should be established by the central government to investigate complaints against RAW, IB or NTRO. It will consist of a chairperson, a high court judge, and a former head of IB or RAW, serving five-year terms without reappointment.
According to the bill, the tribunal can set its own procedures and holds the same powers as a civil court for matters such as summoning witnesses, requiring document production, and examining evidence.
Individuals can file complaints if they believe the RAW, IB, or NTRO have wrongfully acted against them or their property. Upon receiving a complaint, the tribunal will determine if it warrants adjudication, and if so, will investigate the grounds for the actions taken by these agencies. If the tribunal needs to assess the validity of a warrant or authorisation, it will refer that part of the complaint to the designated authority.
According to the bill, if the tribunal finds that the agencies acted without reasonable grounds, it can order the cessation of those actions, destruction of related records, compensation for the complainant, restitution of damaged property, or legal proceedings against responsible individuals.
The bill was first introduced by Tewari in Parliament in 2011, when the Congress was in power at the Centre, but lapsed when he became a Union minister in 2012. Private member bills can only be introduced in Parliament by MPs who are not ministers and are technically referred to as “private members” of the House concerned. It was then again introduced by him in the monsoon session of Parliament in 2021, and then in monsoon session this year.