Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Friday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take another look into the extension of BSF’s jurisdiction from 15 km to 50 km near the International Border and restore the status quo that existed before the notification of 11 October 2021. This would help the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Punjab Police to work together against anti-national forces, he said in his letter. Channi also sought time for a meeting with the Prime Minister on this issue.
In the letter, Channi said that the BSF was trained to perform their primary duty of guarding and securing the International Border and to act as the first line of defence. He wrote that policing in the hinterland was the duty and responsibility of the state/local police. Moreover, the Punjab Police was a professional force fully competent to handle any law and order situation within the state. The Chief Minister said that the Punjab Police had deat with terrorism effectively in the past, which would not have been possible without effective coordination between Punjab Police and Central agencies. He said joint operations had been conducted successfully against drug traffickers and terrorist modules because of excellent coordination between BSF and Punjab Police in the recent past.
Making a strong plea to review the entire matter, the Chief Minister said there were no justifiable reasons for Government of India to unilaterally change the existing arrangements. He wrote that police and law and order were subjects on the State List. By conferring on BSF officers the powers of police officers to search, seizure and arrest persons, not only for prevention of offences punishable under various Acts but also for any cognizable offence punishable under any other Central Act without consulting the state governments or obtaining their concurrence, amounted to encroachment upon the powers and role of state by the Centre. He further said the Central government was thus attempting to disturb the federal structure of the Constitution.
Punjab has 425 kilometres of International Border with Pakistan, and more than 80% of the total area of the border districts—Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Fazilka—and all the major towns and cities including all the district headquarters of these border districts come within 50 km from the International Border.