UP govt introduces UPCOCA in Assembly; bill gives police more powers to combat organised crime in state

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday introduced in the state Assembly a bill to enact a stringent law on the the lines of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) to combat organised crimes in the state. The Uttar Pradesh Control of Organised Crime Bill, 2017, was introduced in the House by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath soon after the Question Hour. The state cabinet recently approved the draft of the proposed legislation, which has been prepared in consultation with the law department for effective check on organised crimes, mafia and white collared crimes. [caption id=“attachment_3813139” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha in Lucknow. PTI[/caption] The Uttar Pradesh law will allow the state to intercept wire, electronic or oral communications and present them before a court as evidence against the accused, according to a report in  The Telegraph. There will also been an “appealing authority” constituted under the chairmanship of a retired high court judge to hear cases decided by the special courts. A similar law was passed by the Uttar Pradesh government in 2007-08 when Mayawati was chief minister but had to be withdrawn after then President Pratibha Patil refused to give assent for the law. Opposition parties have claimed that the bill has the potential to be misused against politicians and student leaders, and there are already enough laws to deal with organised crime in the state, according to  The Indian Express. They have said that they will oppose the bill whenever it is table in the house.