India's security apparatus is a complex structure where various forces and agencies operate under distinct mandates, primarily governed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for internal security and the Ministry of Defence for external defense. These forces are established by specific Acts of Parliament, defining their powers and jurisdiction.
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), a Central Armed Police Force (CAPF), is the premier internal security force. It originated as the Crown Representative's Police in 1939 and was renamed and constituted as an armed force of the Union by the Central Reserve Police Force Act, 1949, on December 28, 1949. Its mandate is to assist State and Union Territory administrations in maintaining law and order, and it is heavily involved in counter-insurgency and anti-Left Wing Extremism operations.
In contrast, the Border Security Force (BSF) is a border guarding force, formed on December 1, 1965, following the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War, which exposed the inadequacy of state police forces for border protection. The Border Security Force Act, 1968, constituted it as an Armed Force of the Union. The BSF's primary mandate is to guard India's borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh during peacetime and prevent trans-border crimes.
A specialized investigative body is the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the principal counter-terrorism law enforcement agency. It was established by the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, following the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, to investigate and prosecute offenses affecting the sovereignty and security of India. The NIA has concurrent jurisdiction, allowing it to probe terror-related cases across states without state government permission. A significant change occurred with the 2019 amendment, which expanded the NIA's jurisdiction to include offenses committed outside India and added crimes like human trafficking and cyber-terrorism to its schedule. The NIA connects to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, as it investigates offenses listed in its schedule.