Rajasthan govt to relook at gag Bill

JAIPUR:In a climbdown, the Rajasthan government on Tuesday referred to a select committee the controversial bill that seeks to ‘protect’ public servants from on-duty probe.

The 15-member committee will be headed by state home minister Gulab Chand Kataria. A select committee is appointed to resolve a specific issue and dissolves after it submits its report to the assembly. Parliamentary affairs minister Rajendra Rathore said the panel will submit report in two months and based on its recommendations, the bill will be redrafted and re-introduced in the Budget session of the assembly in February 2018.

Asked about the ordinance, Rathore said the since bill had been introduced in the assembly, the ordinance would lapse within 42 days.

The Rajasthan Criminal Laws (Rajasthan Amendment) Bill 2017 was tabled by the Rajasthan government in the legislative assembly on Monday amid uproarious scenes by the opposition Congress, which staged a walkout from the House in protest.

Three petitions were also filed in the high court challenging the bill. In view of the widespread protests, chief minister Vasundhara Raje held a meeting with senior cabinet ministers on Monday evening and it was decided to refer the bill to a select committee. Talking to the media in the assembly on Tuesday, Kataria said a large number of false cases were filed with the intent to malign public servants that took up a lot of time and manpower in investigation.

“Of the total IPC cases, 36% are under 156(3) (complaint filed in court) and often after investigation FR (case found to be false) is filed in 70-75% cases… the allega- tions are serious but baseless with an intent to malign,” he said.

He said the anger of media, MLAs and the public was on two provisions of the bill – that the media has been brought in and a provision has been made for two year imprisonment. And that a 180 day limit has been set for prosecution sanction.

“In view of opposition on these two provisions we decided to refer the bill to the select committee and get all views and create consensus,” he said.

Kataria also clarified that presidential assent for the ordinance had been received on September 4. The ordinance was issued on September 6 and notified in the gazette on September 7.