The Indian Parliament has passed the National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second (Amendment) Bill, 2023, providing significant relief to nearly 50 lakh residents living in unauthorized colonies in Delhi. The bill, which extends protection against punitive actions such as sealing and demolition until December 2026, was passed amidst a backdrop of political contention, with a mass suspension of opposition MPs.
Introduced by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on December 13, the bill was cleared by the Lok Sabha and subsequently by the Rajya Sabha on the twelfth day of the Winter Session. The legislation aims to extend the validity of the National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second Act from January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2026. This extension is intended to provide continued protection from punitive action for various unauthorized developments in Delhi, including slum dwellers, hawkers, unauthorized colonies, schools, religious and cultural institutions, and agricultural godowns.
In his address to the Rajya Sabha, Minister Puri indicated that after regularizing and granting property rights to residents in these colonies, the government would address the issue of affluent unauthorized colonies. He referenced the PM Uday scheme, initiated in 2019 for identification and issuing of property rights in unauthorized colonies, stating,
“Under that we have put in place a system which has identified the unauthorized colonies, not all…some of my colleagues will say that some 69 belonging to the HNIs or high net worth individuals, but we are on record to have said that we will complete this work sequentially and then will move on to the others.”
Puri defended the need for the extension, citing the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the pace of progress under the PM Uday scheme and the final stages of the Master Plan 2041. He emphasized that the extension was necessary to manage the changes coming in on various subjects covered by the Plan.
“It will be our effort that in the next three years we will be able to complete a substantial portion of that because the verification has been done,”
he said.
The bill’s passage was not without criticism. Opposition members argued that pushing back deadlines is a stopgap measure rather than a policy-based solution. However, Puri argued in the Lok Sabha that without the extension, the vulnerable population of Delhi would be
“liable for ceiling, demolition, and displacement.”
The National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second Act, 2011, initially valid until December 31, 2014, has undergone several extensions. The most recent amendment, passed in 2021, extended its validity until December 31, 2023. The recent Lok Sabha approval extends it further until December 31, 2026.
The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha through a voice vote. The session was marked by the suspension of 49 opposition members from the Lok Sabha, bringing the total number of opposition MPs suspended in this session from both houses to 141. This mass suspension of opposition MPs during the session has been a point of contention, highlighting the ongoing political dynamics in the Indian Parliament.
Also read-Delhi Court Dismisses NewsClick Founder’s Plea For Seized Devices In UAPA Case (lawchakra.in)
