MediaNama’s Take: The government must exercise caution before allowing the CBI to investigate cybercrime without the consent of state governments. Law and order is a state subject under the Constitution, and cybercrime, like all crimes, should fall under the purview of state police departments. The Committee report comes from a Union-level institution and thus naturally does not include submissions from state-level investigative bodies, which may already have the ability to tackle cybercrime.
Additionally, if the CBI gains the power to investigate, based on its sole discretion, any cybercrime case in the country, why should that apply only to specific offenses? Why not crimes against women or communal violence?
What’s The News: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs in the Rajya Sabha has recommended that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) be empowered to investigate cybercrime cases without the consent of state governments. This empowerment would come through an amendment of the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act, 1946.
The Committee also recommended that the Home Ministry consult with state governments that have not given consent to the CBI to resolve this issue. These recommendations came through a Committee report on cybercrime and its ramifications.
In its submission to the Committee, the CBI stated that the requirement for state consent on a case-by-case basis created operational constraints that hampered timely investigation of cybercrime complaints. While states can provide general consent under the DSPE Act, the CBI submitted that, to date, eight state governments had withdrawn their consent.
“This inhibits timely detection and is particularly problematic for coordinated national responses and digital offences with cross border implications. The multiplicity of laws and the absence of harmonized procedures across states complicate access to search, seizure, and trial jurisdiction,” said the report.
The CBI’s Submission:
In its submission, the CBI provided an overview of the existing mechanisms and processes in place to investigate cybercrime. One of these is the Cyber Crime Investigation Division (CCID) of the CBI, established to tackle complex digital offences with inter-state and international dimensions. The investigative body has also deployed the Network for Evidence Tracing, Research, and Analysis (NETRA) laboratory, which provides capabilities for real-time packet inspection, forensic imaging, memory analysis, and malware reverse engineering.
The agency has adopted a three-pillar strategic framework targeting financial structures (mule accounts and money laundering systems), technical tools (phishing kits and breach data repositories), and human facilitators (overseas scam syndicates and traffickers).
The CBI has also coordinated major nationwide operations, including Chakra I-V, which dismantled fraudulent call centres, investment schemes, and cryptocurrency laundering networks. Operation Megh Chakra targeted child sexual exploitation and abuse material across online platforms. These operations involved collaboration with INTERPOL, Europol, the FBI, and police forces from Japan, Germany, and Australia.
The CBI has developed advanced forensic capabilities encompassing disk and memory analysis, mobile device examination, blockchain tracing, and open-source intelligence tools.
The agency recommended establishing regional digital forensic laboratories and implementing national cyber literacy programmes to strengthen India’s cybercrime response framework, while addressing procedural dependencies that hinder coordinated investigations.
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Dissenting Notes:
MP Haris Beeran of the Indian Union Muslim League opposed the Committee’s recommendation to amend the DSPE Act and allow the CBI to investigate cybercrime without consent from state governments.
“This sentence may be deleted, as it may impinge upon cooperative federalism. During the hearing, it was informed to the committee that several states have not given their consent. Therefore, we may not be able to speculate on the reasons why the majority of states have not given consent, and it may not be appropriate to recommend such sweeping amendments under the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act,” he said.
Background on Cybercrime in India:
A government statement in the Rajya Sabha revealed that the National Cyber Reporting Platform (NCRP) saw 22.5 lakh cases of cybercrime in 2024, a 500% jump from 2021. Maharashtra saw the most cases reported in the year at 3.03 lakh, while Uttar Pradesh followed with 3.01 lakh cases and Karnataka with around 1.7 lakh.
The Home Ministry had also previously reported that popular messaging platform WhatsApp saw the highest number of cybercrime incidents at 43,797 cases in 2024. Telegram and Instagram followed, with 22,860 and 19,800 complaints, respectively.
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