Tag: Bill

Women Reservation Bill Parliament

Pass Women Quota Bill During Special Parl Session: Cong

By LokMarg

A day ahead of the week-long special session of Parliament, the Congress party has yet again raised their demand for a greater reservation for women in legislative roles.

In a post on X, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the Congress Working Committee demands that the Women’s Reservation Bill must be passed during the special session of Parliament.

Praising the previous Congress governments, Jairam Ramesh said former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi first introduced Constitution Amendment Bills for one-third reservation in panchayats and nagarpalikas in May 1989 — which passed in Lok Sabha but failed in Rajya Sabha.

“Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao reintroduced Constitution Amendment Bills for one-third reservation for women in panchayats and nagarpalikas in April 1993. Both Bills passed and became law. Now there are more than 15 lakh elected women representatives in panchayats and nagarpalikas,” he said.

Former PM Manmohan Singh brought the Constitution Amendment Bill for one-third reservation for women in Parliament and state legislatures. The Bill was passed on March 9, 2010 in the Rajya Sabha but was not taken up in Lok Sabha.

“Bills introduced/ passed in Rajya Sabha do not lapse. Women’s Reservation Bill is still very much active. The Congress party has for the past nine years been demanding that the Women’s Reservation Bill already passed by the Rajya Sabha should now get passed by the Lok Sabha as well,” Jairma Ramesh wrote on X.

As per the Parliamentary Bulletin, released on Wednesday, a discussion on “Parliamentary Journey of 75 years starting from Samvidhan Sabha – Achievements, Experiences, Memories and Learnings” will be held in Parliament on the first day of the five-sitting long special session starting tomorrow.

Also, four bills including a Bill to regulate the appointment, conditions of service, and term of office of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners are part of the legislative business of the government for the session.

The other bills to be taken up include ‘The Advocates (Amendment) Bill, 2023’ and ‘The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023’, which were already passed by Rajya Sabha on August 3, 2023.

‘The Post Office Bill, 2023’ has also been listed in the Lok Sabha business. The bill was earlier introduced in Rajya Sabha on August 10, 2023 and it repeals the Indian Post Office Act, 1898. (ANI)

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Election Commissioner bill

Bill On Appointment Of CEC, Other Election Commissioners Among 4 Bills Listed For Parliament’s Special Session

By LokMarg

A Bill to regulate the appointment, conditions of service, and term of office of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners is among the legislative business of the government for the upcoming Special Session of Parliament, beginning on September 18. 

As per the Parliamentary Bulletin, apart from the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, The Advocates (Amendment) Bill, 2023, The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023, and The Post Office Bill, 2023, are among the bills listed for the five-sitting long Special Session. 

The Bill on Appointment of Election Commissioners was introduced in Rajya Sabha during the Monsoon session on 10 August. 

This Bill also deals with the procedure for the transaction of business by the Election Commission. Besides, it proposes that the Election Commissioners will be appointed by the President on the recommendation of a panel comprising the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister will chair the panel. 

The Bill, if it comes into effect, will negate the Supreme Court’s March 2023 judgement that held that the appointment of Election Commissioners will be done by the President on the advice of a panel comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, and the Chief Justice of India. However, in its judgement, the apex court had held that the procedure underlined by it would hold till a law is enacted by Parliament. 

The proposed bill also evoked sharp reactions from the opposition parties with the Congress leader KC Venugopal earlier stating that the legislation aims to make the Election Commission a “puppet in the hands of Prime Minister”. 

The Special Session will be held from September 18 to 22. 

The Parliamentary Bulletin, also mentioned that a discussion on “Parliamentary Journey of 75 years starting from Samvidhan Sabha – Achievements, Experiences, Memories and Learnings” will be held in Lok Sabha on the first day of the upcoming session. (ANI)

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Indian Wildlife Act Amended

Rajya Sabha Amends Wildlife Act, Adds More Species

By LokMarg

The Rajya Sabha on Thursday passed the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Bill, 2022 which is intended to amend the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 to incorporate more species protected under the law.

The Lok Sabha passed the Bill during the Monsoon session earlier this year. The Bill seeks to implement India’s obligations under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which requires countries to regulate the trade of all listed specimens through permits.

Replying to the discussion on the Bill, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said that the Bill was brought because CITES requires an independent framework for the protection of wildlife.

After being passed, the Bill will allow the transfer or transport of a captive elephant for religious and other purposes by a person with a valid ownership certificate.

The winter session of the Parliament began on Wednesday. The session will have a total of 17 working days.

The BJP-led Central government’s agenda for the winter session of Parliament includes 16 new bills. (ANI)

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US Senate Passes Bill

US Senate Passes Bill Granting Protections To Same-Sex, Interracial Marriages

By LokMarg

The US Senate on Tuesday passed legislation granting federal protections to same-sex and interracial marriages in the United States.

The Senate passed the Respect for Marriage Act in a vote of 61-36, with 60 votes needed for passage, according to CNN.
The bill requires the US federal government to recognize a marriage between two individuals if the marriage was valid in the state where it was performed. According to US media, it also guarantees recognition of marriages between states through the full faith and credit clause of the US Constitution.

However, the bill does not require US states to issue marriage licenses contrary to their laws.

In a statement, US President Joe Biden said the Senate’s approval of the Respect for Marriage Act is a bipartisan achievement, showcasing that Republicans and Democrats together support the right of LGBTQ and interracial couples to marry.

“With today’s bipartisan Senate passage of the Respect for Marriage Act, the United States is on the brink of reaffirming a fundamental truth: love is love, and Americans should have the right to marry the person they love. For millions of Americans, this legislation will safeguard the rights and protections to which LGBTQI+ and interracial couples and their children are entitled,” Biden said.

“It will also ensure that, for generations to follow, LGBTQI+ youth will grow up knowing that they, too, can lead full, happy lives and build families of their own,” he added.

Biden said he will sign the legislation if it passes the House of Representatives and is sent to his desk.

The legislation was crafted through bipartisan collaboration and amended to provide religious protections for organizations that do not wish to provide goods or services to celebrate same-sex marriages.

The bill also contains provisions to prevent it from being used to diminish or repeal protections such as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

The House passed the bill in July, placing the legislation on track to be signed by US President Joe Biden.

The Senate passed the bill in its so-called “lame duck session” between Election Day earlier in November and the new class of lawmakers taking office in January. While Democrats will retain their majority in the Senate, they are set to lose control of the House.

Lawmakers are also slated to consider government funding legislation, the National Defense Authorization Act, Ukraine aid, and other legislative priorities before the end of the year. (ANI)

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Draft Data Protection Bill

Govt Reintroduces Draft Data Protection Bill For Public Comments

By LokMarg

Three months after the withdrawal of the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill from the lower house of the Parliament, the central government has now come up with a new draft Bill seeking views from the public.

For the record, the central government during the recent Monsoon session of Parliament withdrew the Bill from the Lok Sabha several months after it was introduced.
The Union Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw today tweeted: “Seeking your views on draft Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022.” He also posted a link to the draft Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022.

Vaishnaw had earlier said that the Bill was withdrawn because the Joint Parliamentary Committee recommended 81 amendments in a bill of 99 sections.

“Above that, it made 12 major recommendations. Therefore, the bill has been withdrawn and a new bill will be presented for public consultation,” he had said.

The purpose of this Act, the draft said, is to provide for the processing of digital personal data in a manner that recognizes both the right of individuals to protect their personal data and the need to process personal data for lawful purposes.

The Bill was much needed as the Digital India mission has caused digitization of the Indian economy and transformed the lives of Indian citizens in particular and governance in general.

Presently, there are over 76 crore active digital citizens and over the next coming years, this is expected to touch 120 crores (1.2 billion). India is the largest connected democracy in the world and is amongst the highest consumers and producers of data per capita amongst the countries.

The first principle of the proposed Bill is that usage of personal data by organisations must be done in a manner that is lawful, fair to the individuals concerned, and transparent.

The second principle of purpose limitation is that the personal data is used for the purposes for which it was collected. The third principle of data minimisation is that only those items of personal data required for attaining a specific purpose must be collected.

Among others, personal data should be limited to such duration as is necessary for the stated purpose for which personal data was collected and reasonable safeguards to ensure that there is no unauthorised collection or processing of personal data are some features.

The government said during the drafting of the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 the entire gamut of principles was widely debated and discussed. These include the rights of individuals, duties of entities processing personal data and regulatory framework, among others. (ANI)

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