Parliament passes Bill to ban funding of weapons of mass destruction

New Delhi, August 1

Parliament has approved the Weapons of Mass Destruction Bill, with the Rajya Sabha clearing it on Monday.

The approval of the Bill, which tightens the noose around financiers, comes on a day the review conference of Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT) began in New York. India is among the handful of countries that is not a member of the NPT despite possessing nuclear weapons.

The Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Amendment Bill, 2022, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on April 5, 2022.

The Bill amends the earlier WMD Act of 2005 with the focus on tightening the provisions on financing. The Bill bars persons from financing any prohibited activity related to weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems. To prevent persons from financing such activities, the Central government may freeze, seize or attach their funds, financial assets, or economic resources (whether owned, held, or controlled, directly or indirectly). It may also prohibit persons from making finances or related services available for the benefit of other persons in relation to any activity which is prohibited. The NPT represents the only binding commitment in a multilateral treaty to the goal of disarmament by the nuclear-weapon states. However, India terms the NPT as a cartel arrangement between the P-5 members (the US, France, the UK, Russia and China) of the UN Security Council which seek to keep out the new nuclear powers such as Israel, India and Pakistan.

Tightening noose on financiers

• The Bill amends the earlier WMD Act of 2005 with the focus on tightening the provisions on financing
• It bars persons from financing any prohibited activity related to weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems