Centre ready for dialogue with CMs on NCTC

With the chorus against the formation of the National Counter Terrorism Council turning louder, the government on Tuesday said it is ready for a dialogue to dispel any misgivings or concerns expressed by states opposing it.

Union Telecom and Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said each state is already represented in the central council of NCTC and if there was any misgiving, the Centre would remove it through dialogue.

"If they have any concerns, there is no problem in having a dialogue. If there are any misgivings, no problem, we can have a dialogue but all that is being done by the central government for counter-terrorism operations," Sibal told reporters.

Explaining the rationale behind setting up the NCTC, he said the powers that were earlier with the central government have been given to the NCTC for counter-terrorism operations.

"There is a central council of NCTC. The director and three joint directors of NCTC and the heads of the anti-terrorist organisations or forces of each states are represented in it. So each state is represented. And they look after the overall activities of the NCTC. So this is the rationale of moving forward," he said.

The opposition to the NCTC has grown louder, with at least 13 states, including West Bengal headed by United Progressive Alliance ally Trinamool Congress, voicing concerns about the formation of the body, which they claimed is usurping the powers of states and disturbing the federal structure.

Sibal said, "I was also not aware of the details of the NCTC and came to know of it only recently".

On the proposed meeting of the group of ministers scheduled for Wednesday to discuss giving statutory backing to model code of conduct, by which cases of its violation would be tried by the court instead of the Election Commission, he said that he was not aware of the agenda.

"I am on the GOM but I am not aware of the agenda. It so happens that bureaucracy makes certain proposals and sometimes we discuss them and sometimes we reject them", he said.