TELHI he customs department wants a change in the Customs Act so that offences relat- ing to national security remain

nonbailable. Several people arrested for serious offences such as smug- gling fake currency notes and importing dangerous goods have secured bail after the Su- preme Court ruled on 30 Sep- tember that all offences under the Customs Act of 1962 and ex- cise act of 1944 are non-cogni- zable and bailable, said two offi- cials aware of the development. The apex court also ruled that customs officials cannot make arrests without a warrant. We are in consultation with the law ministry to file a review petition in the Supreme Court. If that does not work out, we may consider an amendment to the Customs Act if required, said an official of the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), requesting anonymity. The Customs Act has been in existence for many years and requires some amendments.

CBEC is not hopeful of gain- ing much from a review peti- tion, said a second official, who also did not want to be identified. It is also time con- suming. The board wants to in- troduce amendment by which the powers of the customs can be protected. Offences handled by customs officials are not just economic in nature but also relate to na- tional security, such as smug- gling of arms, ammunition and fake currency, and import of hazardous material, the officials said. The CBEC wants the right to make arrests for investigation, interrogation and finding out the manner and extent of eva- sion for certain offences under the Customs Act, excise act or Foreign Exchange Regulation Act of 1973, they said. Two Turkish nationals who had been arrested with fake In- dian currency notes worth `1.5 crore, as well as 12 people ac- cused of importing hazardous chemicals, secured bail after the apex court ruling, said a third official, who also requested an- onymity. The customs department has made 19 arrests in 120 cases over the past year. The amendment would strike a balance, said the sec- ond official cited above. We have no problems with bail be- ing given if the offence is not major. But it should not be the case when it's a major offence. It does not send the right signal if someone found for anti-national activities is let out on a simple bail.

Advocate Rajiv Nayyar said the judgement has come as a re- lief for people from harassment by customs officials. On the other hand, customs should be given limited powers to arrest, since they also deal with serious crimes like fake currency circulation, arms smuggling, etc., he said. If there is an amendment, then they should focus on this aspect that power to arrest be desig- nated to responsible authorities and be limited to serious cases. -------------------x--------------------------------x---------------------------------

Second news
The government may allow intelligence agencies to take help from private consultants and academic institutions for dealing with economic crime. The idea has been mooted by a panel appointed to recom- mend changes in the role of the central economic intelligence bureau (CEIB), a nodal body in the finance ministry for the col- lection and dissemination of in- formation to various intelligence agencies. The recommendations of the report of the panel headed by S.S. Khan, a former member of the central board of direct taxes (CBDT), are likely to be accepted by the government, said an official involved in the decision- making process, asking not to be identified. The report, which is being ex- amined by the finance ministry, also suggests raising a perma- nent cadre of officers as a resource pool for the enforcement directorate, financial intelligence

unit and CEIB to address the skill shortage in dealing with economic crimes. Mint has reviewed a copy of the report. CEIB should have a separate unit to undertake (macroeconomic) studies on its own or through consultants or profes- sional consultancy firms. It may also enter into MoUs (memoran- dums of understanding) with se- lected academic and research institutions and sponsor studies relating to macroeconomic fac- tors and policies that enable spe- cific type of economic offences and tax evasion possible or prof- itable, said the report. It said the CEIB should hire in- dustry experts, especially with knowledge of data analytics and other branches of information technology, on a contractual ba- sis. Students of law, economics and accountancy should also be taken in as short-term trainees on specific projects, it added. CEIB receives sensitive intelli- gence inputs from all enforcement and intelligence agencies, and is assigned to produce indepth analytical and trend re- ports on economic crimes. Experts are divided on the proposal. Professionals will bring cut- ting edge to analysis, said S.D. Pradhan, a former deputy na- tional security adviser. Let us face it. Indian intelligence appa- ratus faces a serious challenge. We have enough intelligence in- puts but lack good analysis. Pradhan added that private con- sultants should not be entrusted with sensitive information.

As long as it is not sensitive, any outsourcing is welcome, said a senior intelligence officer, requesting anonymity. But if we engage private firms and profes- sionals to deal with sensitive data, there is a good chance that the privileged information will be misused once the contractual commitments are over. Also, we are dealing with national securi- ty, we can't take chances. An officer with another intelli- gence agency said the government should instead invest in developing skills of officers. This officer also declined to be identi- fied. Narayanan Ramaswamy, part- ner at KPMG, disagreed. This was long overdue, he said. If nuclear research and software for defence equipment can be developed in private laboratories, the fear is unwarrant- ed. The move will encourage the development of skill in areas of forensic accounting and related investigation. It sends a positive message.