Chhattisgarh State PCS

• 29 Dec 2023

General Consent Principle for CBI

Why in News?

According to the sources, Chhattisgarh government will restore General Consent for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe cases in the state.

• The States give their general consent to CBI under Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act, 1946.

Key Points

• As of March 2023, Mizoram, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Kerala, Jharkhand, Punjab and Meghalaya had withdrawn their general consent given to CBI.
• General Consent Principle for CBI:
  • The consent of the state government to CBI can be either case-specific or “general”.
  • General consent is normally given by states to help the CBI in the seamless investigation of cases of corruption against central government employees in their states.
  • This is essentially consent by default, which means CBI may begin investigations taking consent as having been already given.
  • In the absence of general consent, CBI would have to apply to the state government for its consent in every individual case, and before taking even small actions.