West Bengal’s controversial Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Act, 2026, also known as the ‘Goonda Bill’, came into force after midnight on Monday. The law gives the state government vast power to curb crime and anti-social activities through preventive detention, property seizures, and externment of habitual offenders.
Even though the BJP-led state government believes the law is meant to restore law and order and curb criminal networks, opposition parties and civil rights groups believe that the law can be abused and misused against political opponents and dissenters.
What is the Goonda Bill?
The Act, passed by the West Bengal Assembly on June 29 and later signed by the Governor, will improve public safety and will help to stop organised criminal activities like illegal mining, unauthorised sand extraction, wildlife crimes, extortion, and other crimes that create fear or disturb public order.
Now, as a result of that notification, authorities in the state can start enforcing the law.
Key Provisions Of The New Law
One of the main provisions of the Act is preventive detention. For example, the government can, at any point in time in the future, lock up a person for up to one year if it believes the person is a threat to public safety, even if he is convicted of a crime.
The law also gives authorities the power to:
Confiscate property that could have been connected to offences under the Act using relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Make externment orders, in which habitual offenders are required to leave the locality, district, or notified area for up to one year. If individuals are identified as a threat to public order, restrict their entry into the area. Provide legal protection for government officials who are acting in good faith while enforcing the law.
Since the law provides sufficient protections, the state government has rejected criticism and said that the law is sufficient to protect against arbitrary action.
Every preventive detention order must be reviewed by an Advisory Board headed by a serving or retired judge of the Calcutta High Court, together with two members qualified to become High Court judges.
Individuals under preventive detention will also have the opportunity to present their case to the board.
Suvendu Adhikari has said that the law is meant to target habitual criminals and organised crime syndicates, not ordinary citizens.
Government's Stand
Defending the law, West Bengal’s minister Dilip Ghosh said the legislation was necessary to curb politically protected criminal elements that operated for years.
The Act is to restore confidence among ordinary people and to encourage victims to come forward to report crimes without fear, he said.
The government has also argued that similar preventive detention laws already exist in states like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, and Jharkhand.
Opposition Raises Concerns
Opposition parties are still critical of the legislation despite the government’s assurances, and they are concerned.
If not well-monitored, they say, the power of detaining people without trial, confiscating property, and removing people from certain regions could be misused for political reasons.
At the same time, civil society organisations have also said that the implementation of the law needs to be closely monitored so that constitutional protections and individual rights will be upheld.
Why It Matters
The Goonda Bill is one of the biggest changes in the policing and public order systems in West Bengal in recent years. Supporters say it will curb organised crime; critics say it will ultimately come down to whether or not the government acts responsibly under the Act.
As enforcement occurs throughout the state, we expect the law to be at the center of political as well as legal debate in the months ahead.
