What was POTA? The repealed anti-terror law that sparked Amit Shah’s outburst against Congress in LS

The Home Minister, in his fiery speech, brought back to the spotlight key historical decisions that he claims compromised India’s strategic interests.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday accused the Congress-led UPA government of repealing the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) to save its “vote bank”.

“In 2002, Atal ji's NDA government had brought POTA (The Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002). Who objected to the POTA then? It was the Congress party...After coming to power in 2004, the Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan Singh government scrapped the POTA law...For whose benefit did Congress scrap POTA?...,” Shah said while addressing the Lok Sabha.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah says, "In 2002, Atal ji's NDA government had brought POTA (The Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002). Who objected to the POTA then? It was the Congress party...After coming to power in 2004, the Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan Singh government scrapped the POTA… pic.twitter.com/vsSpv6XwNB

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— ANI (@ANI) July 29, 2025

According to Shah, about 1000 people were killed in terror attacks under Congress government. "Congress kept sending terrorists’ photos to Pakistan. Congress shed tears for terrorists killed in Batla House but not police killed by the terrorist…” said the home minister.

What was POTA?

The Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002 (POTA) was enacted to strengthen anti-terrorism operations following a surge in terrorist activities, particularly after the 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament. The Act was notified on 28 March 2002 and repealed in September 2004.

It was enacted after the 2001 Parliament and 9/11 attacks. According to POTA, a suspect could be detained for up to 180 days by a special court. The law made fundraising for the purpose of terrorism a “terrorist act”.

A separate chapter to deal with terrorist organisations was included. The Centre could add or remove any organisation from the schedule.

Many of its provisions were later incorporated into amendments to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) after its repeal in 2004.

 Why was POTA repealed?

POTA was repealed by the United Progressive Alliance government in 2004 due to  concerns over alleged misuse and human rights violations. The Congress party-led coalition said it was concerned that  POTA “has been grossly misused in the past two years”.

“There will be no compromise in the fight against terrorism, but given the abuse of POTA that has taken place, the UPA government will repeal it while existing laws are enforced strictly,” the coalition said in its governing agenda.