(MENAFN- Live Mint) The Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government on Tuesday introduced the 'One Nation, One Election' bills in Parliament. If passed, the two bills will pave the way for Constitutional amendments so that elections to state assemblies can be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections.
As the ONOE proposal sparked a heated debate in the House over the benefit of election reform for a populated country like India, the bills have been sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed discussions.
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Referring bills to these committees ensures detailed scrutiny of draft laws. However, the number of bills sent to joint committees has declined over the past few years.
According to PRS Legislative research, only 16 per cent of bills were referred to committees for detailed scrutiny in the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-2024). This percentage is significantly lower than the corresponding figures for the previous three Lok Sabhas. Here are the details of the major bills that were sent to JPCs for detailed examination over the past few years.
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The WAQF (Amendment) Bill , 2024, was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August this year. The bill aims to introduce reforms such as digitisation, enhanced audits, improved transparency, and legal mechanisms to reclaim illegally occupied properties. The JPC, led by Jagdambika Pal, is examining the bill.
The committee has held 27 meetings in Delhi and is likely to continue discussions as its tenure has been extended for a few more months.
Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill (2023)
The bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha in March 2023, focuses on amendments to the Forest (Conservation) Act , 1980. It was sent to a JPC under Professor Rajendra Agarwal. The committee held nine meetings and presented its report on July 20, 2023.
Jan Vishwas Bill, 2022
Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2022 was referred to a 31-member joint committee of both Houses of Parliament. A JPC led by PP Chaudhary met 10 times and submitted the report in March 2023. The amendment bill focused on 42 laws, across multiple sectors, including agriculture, environment, and media and publication.
Biological Diversity Amendment Bill (2021)
The Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill 2021 was introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 16, 2021. It sought to simplify compliance requirements for domestic companies and decriminalise all offences under the Act.
The bill was referred to a joint committee under Sanjay Jaiswal on December 20, 2021. After 15 JPC meetings, the report was tabled in August 2022.
Personal Data Protection Bill (2019)
The joint committee on the Personal Data Protection Bill (2019) was formed in 2019 and held discussions for two years to file the report. The committee, under PP Chaudhary, met over 78 times before submitting its report in the Lok Sabha on December 16, 2021.
Citizenship Amendment Bill (2016)
The much-disputed Citizenship Amendment Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha in 2016. The bill sought to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955, to speed up the process of providing Indian citizenship to religious minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan.
The act was referred to a JPC led by Rajendra Agrawal. The committee submitted its report on January 7, 2019. Later, the bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in January 2019 and by the Rajya Sabha in December 2019.
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