NEW DELHI: The Punjab government on Saturday moved the Supreme Court challenging the Centre's decision to extend the jurisdiction of the Border Security Force (BSF) to a 50 km belt along the international border in the state.
Welcoming the move, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu congratulated the Charanjit Singh Channi government for being the first to approach the top court.
"I congratulate Punjab and its legal team to be the 1st to approach the Hon'ble Supreme Court by filing an original suit challenging the notification extending the BSF jurisdiction," Sidhu tweeted.
He said that fight to retain the federal structure and autonomy of the states has begun, adding that a notice has been issued to the Centre to respond.
The Centre had recently amended the BSF Act to authorise the force to undertake search, seizure and arrest within a larger 50 km stretch, instead of 15 km, from the international border in Punjab, West Bengal and Assam. The move met with stiff opposition in both Punjab and West Bengal, with the states passing a resolution against it in their respective assemblies.
Punjab Chief Minister Channi had said the move is a direct attack on the state's right and the country's federal structure which will not be tolerated by Punjabis.
"It is submitted that the notification dated October 11, 2021 is ultra-vires the Constitution as it defeats the purpose of Entry 1 and 2 of List-II of Schedule 7 of the Constitution of India and encroaches upon plaintiff's plenary authority to legislate on issues which relate to or are necessary for the maintenance of public order and internal peace," the Punjab government has said.
The Centre maintains that extension of BSF's territorial jurisdiction would result in better and more effective control on trans-border crimes in conjunction and cooperation with state police.
Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee has, on repeated occasions, criticised the Centre's decision.
Adding to the regular criticism, Banerjee's December 9 directions to the state police came at an administrative review meeting in Krishnanagar in Bengal's Nadia district. She told the police to ensure that the BSF does not enter the border villages or carry out any activity without the police's knowledge and permission. "Law and order is a state subject and is in the domain of the police. I will not tolerate any kind of oppression on common citizens," Banerjee reportedly told officers.
The BSF has a strength of about 2.65 lakh personnel and it was raised on December 1, 1965. It has 192 operational battalions and is the country's largest border-guarding force, with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the Assam Rifles being the other three.