Cabinet gives nod to strengthen NIA

New Delhi, June 25: The Union Cabinet cleared a proposal which will give the National Investigation Agency (NIA) more powers.

The matter will now be placed before the Parliament. In addition to the NIA Act, there is also a proposed amendment on the cards for the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The amendment would allow the NIA to probe cybercrime and also cases of human trafficking.

The amendment to Schedule 4 of the UAPA will allow the NIA to designate an individual suspected to have terrorist links as a terrorist. Currently, only organisations are designated as terrorist organisations.

The NIA came into existence in 2009 following the Mumbai 26/11 attack. The proposed amendments are under consideration since 2017. The same was proposed to give the agency more teeth and also a wider scope in the wake of fresh challenges emerging.