Land Ordinance to be tabled tomorrow as Lok Sabha resumes

New Delhi, April 19

The controversial land Bill issue is expected to generate much heat in Lok Sabha on Monday with the government deciding to table the new land ordinance on the very first day of the second half of Budget session.

According to the schedule of business, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Pratap Rudy will lay on the table a copy of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Ordinance, promulgated by the President on April 3 under Article 123(2)(a) of Constitution.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will also make a statement regarding the 'Recent Developments in the Republic of Yemen and efforts made for safe evacuation of Indian nationals from there'.

The Budget session will conclude on May 8. The Rajya Sabha is having a new session from April 23 that will end on May 13.

On the eve of resumption of Budget Session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today voiced hope that it would be full of "outcomes", noting that the productivity of Parliament has "reached 125 per cent" since his government came to power.

With Parliament set to witness a stormy session over a host of issues, including the land bill, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu asked BJP MPs to be present in their House throughout.

The land acquisition ordinance, which the government could not get converted into a legislation in the first half of the budget session in Parliament due to stiff opposition in Rajya Sabha, was re-promulgated on April 3, a day before it was to lapse.

The fresh ordinance, which is the 11th by the Narendra Modi government, incorporates nine amendments that were part of the bill passed in Lok Sabha last month. It is pending before the Rajya Sabha where the ruling NDA coalition lacks the numbers to get it passed.

The pending measure, titled Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, that was passed in Lok Sabha sought to replace the ordinance that was promulgated in December.

The Opposition was not in a mood to oblige the government and, in fact, mounted a strong campaign against it. Led by Sonia Gandhi, the Opposition parties demanded the passage of the original land bill that was passed during the UPA regime.

To enable re-promulgation of the ordinance, the government had in last week of March got the Rajya Sabha prorogued.

However, the passage of the bill to replace the ordinance seems an uphill task for the government even in second half of the budget session and the new session of Rajya Sabha, which starts from April 23, as main Opposition Congress has escalated the fight over it besides other parties including from Janata Parivar.

At the outset, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan will tomorrow make obituary references in the House on the passing away of former Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew and two former MPs of the Lower House here. — PTI