| POTA | |
|---|---|
| Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act | |
| Enacted by | Parliament of India |
| Date enacted | 2002 |
| Repeals | |
| 2004 | |
The Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act (POTA) was an anti-terrorism legislation enacted by the Parliament of India in 2002. The act replaced the Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO) of 2001 and the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) (1985–95), and was supported by the governing National Democratic Alliance. The act was repealed in 2004 by the United Progressive Alliance coalition. The bill was defeated in the Rajya Sabha (the upper house) by a 113-98 vote,[1] but was passed in a joint session, as the Lok Sabha (lower house) has more seats. It was only the third time that a bill was passed by a joint session of both houses of parliament.
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The act provided the legal framework to strengthen administrative rights to fight terrorism within the country of India, and was to be applied against any persons and acts covered by the provisions within the act. It was not meant as a substitute for action under ordinary criminal laws.
The act defined what a "terrorist act" and a "terrorist" is, and grants special powers to the investigating authorities described under the act. To ensure certain powers were not misused and human rights violations would not take place, specific safeguards were built into the act.[2] Under the new law, a suspect could be detained for up to 180 days without the filing of charges in court. It also allowed law enforcement agencies to withhold the identities of witnesses, and to treat a confession made to the police as an admission of guilt. Under regular Indian law, a person can deny such confessions in court, but not under POTA.[3]
Once the Act became law, many reports surfaced of the law being grossly abused.[4] Claims emerged that POTA legislation contributed to corruption within the Indian police and judicial system,[5] and human rights and civil liberty groups fought against it. The use of the act became one of the issues during the 2004 election. The United Progressive Alliance government of India committed to repealing the act as part of their campaign. On October 7, 2004, the Union Cabinet approved the repeal of POTA.[6] However, after the Bombay attacks of November 26, 2008, parliament enacted another anti-terror law known as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.