We will play the role of a responsible Opposition: Sudip Bandopadhyay

Trinamool Congress members of Parliament (MP) today staged a demonstration in front of the entrance to the Parliament building against the issue of rising prices of edible commodities all over the country.

The party also gave notice to discuss the issue in Parliament.

Later, speaking to the press on the issue, MP and Leader of the Party in Lok Sabha, Sudip Bandopadhyay said,”All over the country, there is no control over the rising prices,” adding that “during this Monsoon Session, Trinamool Congress would play the role of a responsible Opposition in Parliament.”

 

তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস প্রকৃত বিরোধী দলের ভূমিকা পালন করবেঃ সুদীপ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়

আজ বাদল অধিবেশনের শুরুর দিনই সংসদ ভবনের বাইরে ধরনায় বসেন তৃণমূল সাংসদরা। মূল্যবৃদ্ধি সহ একাধিক ইস্যুতে সরব হয় তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস। অধিবেশন শুরুর আগে সংসদ ভবনের বাইরে প্ল্যাকার্ড হাতে স্লোগান দেন তৃণমূল সাংসদরা।

লোকসভার মুখ্য সচেতক সুদীপ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় জানান, “সারা দেশে মূল্যবৃদ্ধির ওপর কোন লাগাম নেই। চলতি অধিবেশনে তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস যোগ্য ও প্রকৃত বিরোধী দলের ভূমিকা পালন করবে”।

মূল্যবৃদ্ধি থেকে বেকারত্ব ও এফ ডি আই সব ইস্যুতেই মোদী সরকারকে চাপে ফেলতে মরিয়া তৃণমূল।  মূল্যবৃদ্ধি নিয়ে আলোচনার দাবিতে ইতিমধ্যেই তাঁরা সংসদে নোটিস দিয়েছেন।

Price rise, federalism,other issues raised by Trinamool at all-party meet

After a landslide victory at the Bengal Assembly polls, led by Mamata Banerjee, Trinamool Congress today raised key issues including price rise, federalism at the all-party held before the Monsoon Session of Parliament that begins tomorrow.

Sudip Bandopadhyay, Leader of the party in Lok Sabha and Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Chief Whip in Rajya Sabha, represented the party at the meeting held in Delhi today.

The issues raised in the meeting were:

1) Price Rise affecting millions

2) Unemployment

3) Problems of debt-burdened States

4) FDI implementation bypassing Parliament

5) Electoral reforms needed

6) Federal structure must be respected always

7) Kashmir/ Dacca / France issues

8) Internal security

The party is committed to the smooth functioning of Parliament where all the above issues may be discussed.

 

সর্বদলীয় বৈঠকে মূল্যবৃদ্ধি সহ একাধিক সমস্যা উত্থাপন করল তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস

বাংলার বিধানসভা নির্বাচনে মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়ের নিরঙ্কুশ জয়ের পর আজ বর্ষাকালীন অধিবেশন শুরুর আগে সর্বদলীয় বৈঠকে মূল্যবৃদ্ধি, যুক্তরাষ্ট্রীয় পরিকাঠামো সহ অন্যান্য সমস্যার মূল বিষয় উত্থাপিত করে তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস।

আজ দিল্লিতে সর্বদলীয় দলের প্রতিনিধি হিসেবে উপস্থিত ছিলেন লোকসভার সর্বদলীয় নেতা সুদীপ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় এবং রাজ্যসভার মুখ্য সচেতক সুখেন্দু শেখর রায়।

বৈঠকে যেসকল বিষয় উত্থাপিত হয়েছে তা হলঃ

১) মূল্যবৃদ্ধি

২) বেকারত্ব

৩) ঋণ-সংক্রান্ত যুক্তরাষ্ট্রীয় সমস্যাবলী

৪) এফডিআই বাস্তবায়ন ও সংসদে পাস করানো

৫) প্রয়োজনীয় নির্বাচনী সংস্কার

৬) যুক্তরাষ্ট্রীয় পরিকাঠামোকে সবসময় অবশ্যই সম্মান জানাতে হবে

৭) কাশ্মীর / ঢাকা / ফ্রান্স সমস্যা

8) অভ্যন্তরীণ নিরাপত্তা

যদি এই সকল বিষয় নিয়ে সংসদে আলোচনা হলে সংসদ সুষ্ঠুভাবে চলবে বলে জানিয়েছে দল।

Trinamool demands a discussion on Augusta-Westland issue in RS

Trinamool today raised the issue of the Augusta-Westland scam in the Parliament with the Chief Whip of the party in Rajya Sabha, Sukhendu Sekhar Roy submitting a notice under Rule 267 to take up discussion on the issue by suspending the business for the day.

Trinamool wants a thorough discussion on the Augusta-Westland scam and a proper investigation so that the facts see the light of the day. Trinamool also demanded a statement from the Defence Minister in the House.

Around 12:30 PM in the afternoon when Sukhendu Sekhar Roy attempted to speak from his seat, Rule 255 was invoked by the Chairman. Other Trinamool members present in the House walked out in protest for the day after this rule was invoked.

Derek O’Brien questions the credibility of ‘sting video’ in Rajya Sabha

Full Transcript

Sir, thank you so much for allowing me a little time to raise this very important issue.

There is a video which the television channels across the country are running. Even when they are doing so, they are running a disclaimer saying that they are not responsible for the content of that video. In this day of technology, no one knows whether the video is authentic or doctored.

I am not getting into that, Sir. The issue is much bigger issue. Sir, the issue is that when these so called sting operations are done, what is the credibility of the people who do this?

Sir, I can say this with all responsibility that through this company foreign funds are coming into the country before elections. Sir, if you check the call records of this gentleman you would find that five calls were made to Dubai on the morning that this video was released.

This company, Sir, is registered at Post Box N: 235328 Ismail Abdulla Mohd. Buhumaid Building near Al Quasis Bus Station, Damascus Road, Al Qusais Industrial – 4, Dubai.

Sir, this is a bigger issue for the whole House. Why is foreign money coming here? Sir, let us not judge that video; first judge the source of the video, the credibility of the video.

Sir, we would like all journalists to have the independent power to investigate. Sir, we would like professional journalists to have the right to do any kind of investigation.

But who is this journalist? He is not a journalist, Sir. He is a money bag; he is a shot waiting to be hired. Check out his credibility. What does he say in the last line of his press release? He says, “Five years ago, there was a parivartan in Bengal, now it is time for a new parivartan.”

Are these the words of a journalist?

Sir, the Trinamool Congress has a reputation. A leader like Mamata Di represents transparency and credibility. This is political opportunism.

Fight us politically and not with this doctored video.

SS Roy speaks regarding the monthly release of files related to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

Sir, the government had assured that every month 25 files pertaining to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose would be released. But in the month of February, not a single file was published.

Through you, Sir, I would like to request the government to publish 25 files, as assured, without further loss of time.

Trinamool questions the credibility of ‘sting video’ in Parliament

Leader of the Trinamool Congress in Rajya Sabha, Derek O’Brien, today questioned the credibility of a ‘sting video’ being shown across TV channels over the last two days. Trinamool had given a Notice of Suspension of Rules under Rule 267 in the Upper House.

Derek O’Brien said that in this day of technology, the credibility of content in the video is under question. He also questioned the credibility of the people who conducted the sting operation.

“Foreign funds are coming in before elections. Calls were made to Dubai before the video was released. Let us not judge the content of the video. The credibility of the video must be questioned,” he iterated.

Asserting that the Opposition should fight the Trinamool Congress politically, Derek maintained that he welcomes professional journalists to conduct investigative journalism.

The person responsible for the sting operation called for new parivartan in Bengal, Derek O’Brien said. He reiterated that Mamata Banerjee is known for her transparency and credibility.

Click here for the Full Transcript of Speech

Mamata Banerjee speaks on the conspiracies hatched by the Opposition against Trinamool Congress – FULL TRANSCRIPT

Whenever it is election season in Bengal, the Opposition engages in falsehoods, conspiracies, slander and misinformation; canards are spread against us. In other states political battles are fought only at the time of polls; there is no politics over developmental works. However, in Bengal a section of the media and the Opposition only believes in smear campaign.

A section of the media has already started its smear campaign but, according to me, this is a manufactured conspiracy; it is concocted and there is involvement of foreign money in this case.

So many political parties have joined hands to take on Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress in the polls. Even then, they need black money from foreign soils to blackmail us. They do not have any ethical right to continue in politics.

Why are they so afraid?What are they afraid of? I have always maintained that our political opponents should fight us politically. Let them challenge us on development; let them compete with us on the plank of development and progress.Judge us on the parameter of work done;judge us on the basis of our performance. But the Opposition is afraid to do that.

In the last five years we have transformed Bengal. People now are proud to say that they belong to Bengal.But CPI(M), Congress and BJP, with the help of some agencies with vested interests, want to paint a negative picture of the State through continuous conspiracies. Sometimes they stage riots to sow seeds of division between people.

This operation has all the signs of a conspiracy, hatched with the help of foreign funds. I have my doubts on the authenticity of the incident. I think they are concocted. I have doubts over the involvement of the Trinamool Congress with this case.

This person had conducted a similar affair earlier, but couldn’t prove the allegations. There was a lot of illegality involved. What credibility does that person have to question Trinamool Congress, just before the elections?

If the operation was conducted in 2014, what stopped the agency from broadcasting the tapes for two years? Why were they sleeping on it? Was it because they wanted to malign us just before the Assembly polls as they know that they will not be able to defeat us in any other way?

If you cannot defeat her, beat her up and murder her – this is always their plan. Since they cannot defeat me politically, they are maligning my party. I have reached the position I am in now after years of struggle; 99 per cent of my party workers are hard-working.They are trying to malign all these people. It is not always possible to control the rest one per cent; that is also the case for any family. If we come to know of any such malicious activities we always take action. We never authorise anyone to collect money on behalf of party like this.

The BJP, the Congress and the CPI(M) have enough party funds to run an election campaign; they have a lot of moveable and immoveable assets. Trinamool Congress, on the other hand, is a political party which is not-so-well-off financially. We just about manage to fulfil our election expenses with whatever little we have. We depend on membership fees and whatever else people give us. I think our budget is the smallest among the political parties in India.

People of Bengal can see through the intentions of the Opposition; they cannot tackle us politically; so they are up to dirty tricks. Money power, muscle power, mafia power, and media (some sections not all) power have ganged up along with central agencies to malign the character of Mamata Banerjee.

We want an investigation into the whole incident; let there be an investigation about the people who are using foreign money and black money to try and blackmail Trinamool leaders.

The main target of these vested interests is not the 2016 Assembly but the 2019 general election. They are afraid that Mamata Banerjee might have a say in the power centres in Delhi too. Mamata Banerjee does not seek power. I was born in Bengal, have lived in Bengal and would die in Bengal too. I love Bengal and I love to work for its people. If they, who have no hold over their tongues, can question the integrity of a person like me, one can only imagine what they would say about others.

They cannot counter us in any way – be it on principles, on philosophy, on culture or on purity of thought. So they have only one job now – to malign us, to spread canards. They should reflect on their actions. No matter how hard they try they will get a big ZERO.

CPI(M), Congress and BJP have already created a rainbow alliance against me. What else do they want? Even a section of the media is supporting them. Why do they still need to create a scam? I challenge them to prove all the allegations. If they cannot, they must leave politics.

I demand that the authenticity of this video be investigated. Where did the money come from? Was foreign money involved? Have they become so ideologically bankrupt that they need foreign black money to malign me?

Was there a deal? Who struck the deal, if there was one? Which political party is behind the conspiracy? People of Bengal will give a fitting reply to all the conspiracies during the elections.

 

বিরোধীদের কুৎসার জবাব মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়ের

পশ্চিমবাংলায় যখন নির্বাচন আসে তখনই বিরোধীরা এইসব চক্রান্ত, ছলনা, কুৎসা, অপপ্রচার শুরু করে। অন্যান্য রাজ্যে রাজনৈতিক লড়াই শুধু নির্বাচনের সময় হয়, উন্নয়নের কাজে কেউ বাধা দেয় না। শুধুমাত্র বাংলাতেই বিরোধীদের সঙ্গে কিছু মিডিয়া মিলে একসাথে এই কুৎসা ও অপপ্রচার চালায়।

মিডিয়ার একাংশ ইতিমধ্যেই অপপ্রচার শুরু করে দিয়েছে। কিন্তু আমি মনে করি পুরো ঘটনাটাই সাজানো। পুরো ঘটনাটাই ম্যানুফ্যাকচারড। এর মধ্যে বিদেশি টাকা রয়েছে।

মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় ও তৃণমূল কংগ্রেসকে পরাজিত করার জন্য অনেকে হাত মিলিয়েছেন। তারপরও আমাদের ব্ল্যাকমেল করার জন্য তারা বিদেশ থেকে কালো টাকা আমদানি করছে। ওদের কোন নৈতিক যোগ্যতা নেই রাজনৈতিক প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতা করার।

ওরা কেন এত ভয় পায়? বিরোধীদের উচিত আমাদের সঙ্গে রাজনৈতিকভাবে লড়াই করা। তারা আমাদের সঙ্গে উন্নয়ন, প্রগতি, কাজের মাপকাঠি নিয়ে প্রতিযোগিতা করুক।

গত ৫ বছরে আমরা বাংলাকে বদলে দিয়েছি। এখন মানুষ গর্ব করে বলে যে তারা বাংলায় বাস করছে। বাংলার উন্নয়নের জোয়ার থমকে দিতে সিপিএম-কংগ্রেস-বিজেপি ক্রমাগত চক্রান্ত করে চলেছে। তারা কখনো দাঙ্গা করার চেষ্টা করছে, কখনো মানুষে মানুষে বিভেদ তৈরির চেষ্টা করছে।

বিদেশি টাকায় ষড়যন্ত্র করে তৈরি করা হয়েছে এই ‘অপারেশন’। এই ঘটনার সত্যতা নিয়ে আমার সন্দেহ আছে। এই ঘটনায় আদৌ তৃণমূল নেতারা যুক্ত কিনা সে ব্যাপারেও আমার সন্দেহ আছে।

শোনা যাচ্ছে যে এই ধরনের কাজ ভদ্রলোক আগেও করেছেন, কিন্তু অভিযোগগুলো প্রমানিত নয়। নির্বাচনের আগে তৃণমূল কংগ্রেসকে এরূপ প্রশ্ন করার বিশ্বাসযোগ্যতা কি এই ভদ্রলোকের আদৌ আছে?

যদি ২০১৪ সালে এই ‘অপারেশনটি’ করা হয়ে থাকে তাহলে ২ বছর আগে সংস্থাটি ভিডিওগুলো কেন প্রকাশ করল না? নির্বাচনে আমাদের হারাতে পারবে না, এটা জেনে আমাদের কালিমালিপ্ত করার জন্যই কি?

যদি আমাকে পরাজিত করা না যায় তাহলে মার, না হলে খুন করে দাও এটাই সবসময় ওদের মতলব। রাজনৈতিকভাবে আমাদের হারাতে পারবে না তাই সর্বদা আমাদের দলের চরিত্র হননের চেষ্টা। আমি এখন যে জায়গায় পৌঁছেছি তা বহু বছরের সংগ্রামের ফল। আমার দলের ৯৯% কর্মী সৎ, সর্বদা এদের চরিত্র হননের চেষ্টা চলছে। যেকোন পরিবারের এক শতাংশ সদস্যকে যেমন কখনো কখনো নিয়ন্ত্রণ করা যায় না এখানেও তাই। যদি কখনো কোনরকম অবাঞ্ছিত কোন ঘটনার কথা আমাদের কানে আসে আমরা সঙ্গে সঙ্গে তার বিরুদ্ধে ব্যবস্থা নিই। এরকমভাবে দলের জন্য টাকা জোগাড়ের দায়িত্ব কখনোই কাউকে দেওয়া হয়নি।

বিজেপি-সিপিআইএম-কংগ্রেসের দলীয় তহবিলে প্রচুর টাকা আছে যা দিয়ে তারা নির্বাচনী প্রচার চালায়। ওদের প্রচুর স্থাবর ও অস্থাবর সম্পত্তি আছে। তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস গরীব দল। আমাদের যেটুকু আছে তা দিয়েই আমরা নির্বাচনী প্রচারের খরচা চালাই। সদস্যপদের টাকা ও জনগনের অনুদানই আমাদের একমাত্র সম্বল। অন্য সকল রাজনৈতিক দলের থেকে আমাদের তহবিল সর্বাপেক্ষা কম।

বাংলার মানুষ বিরোধীদের আসল রূপ দেখছে। তারা রাজনৈতিকভাবে আমাদের মোকাবিলা করতে পারেনা বলেই অপপ্রচার চালাচ্ছে তারা। মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়ের চরিত্র হনন করার জন্য মানি পাওয়ার, মাসল পাওয়ার, মিডিয়া পাওয়ার ও কেন্দ্রীয় সংস্থাগুলি একজোট হয়েছে।

আমরা পুরো ঘটনার তদন্ত চাই।  বিদেশ থেকে আসা কালো টাকা ব্যবহার করে যারা তৃণমূল নেতাদের ব্ল্যাকমেল করার চেষ্টা করেছে তাদের বিরুদ্ধে তদন্ত হওয়া উচিত।

এদের মূল লক্ষ্য ২০১৬-র বিধানসভা ভোট নয়, ২০১৯ এর সাধারণ নির্বাচন। আমার ক্ষমতার ওপর কোন লোভ নেই। আমি বাংলায় জন্মগ্রহণ করেছি এবং বাংলাতেই মৃত্যুবরণ করব। আমি বাংলাকে ভালোবাসি এবং বাংলার মানুষের জন্য কাজ করতে ভালোবাসি। ওদের জিভে কোন লাগাম নেই, আমার সম্বন্ধে যদি এই প্রশ্ন করে,জানিনা অন্যদের সম্বন্ধে কি বলবে।

আমাদের কালিমালিপ্ত করা, আমাদের কুৎসা করা ছাড়া তাদের আর কোন কাজ নেই। তারা আয়নায় নিজেদের দেখুক, কি করছে তারা ভাবুক। ওরা যতই চেষ্টা করুক, পাবে তারা লাড্ডু।

সিপিএম-কংগ্রেস-বিজেপি ইতিমধ্যেই রামধনু জোট করেছে আমার বিরুদ্ধে। আর কি করতে চায় তারা? মিডিয়ার একাংশ এব্যাপারে তাদের সাহায্য করছে। আমি এই সব অভিযোগ প্রমাণ করার চ্যালেঞ্জ জানালাম। যদি তারা প্রমান করতে না পারেন তাহলে তাদের রাজনীতি ছেড়ে দেওয়া উচিত।

আমি চাই এই ভিডিওর সত্যতা যাচাই হোক। কোথা থেকে এত টাকা এল? বিদেশি টাকা এর মধ্যে আছে কিনা? তারা কি আদর্শগতভাবে এতটাই দেউলিয়া হয়ে গেছে যে বিদেশ থেকে কালো টাকা এনে আমার চরিত্র হননের চেষ্টা করছে?

লেনদেন কি সত্যিই হয়েছিল? হলে কাদের মধ্যে হয়েছিল? কোন রাজনৈতিক দল এই চক্রান্তের পেছনে আছে? আগামী নির্বাচনে এইসব প্রশ্নের যোগ্য উত্তর দেবে বাংলার মানুষ।

 

 

 

Vivek Gupta on the lack of water at Farakka Dam

Sir, through you I would like to report that between yesterday and the day before yesterday, the Farakka Dam has completely stopped working. 2100 MW of power is no longer available to the region of Bengal and in neighbouring states like Jharkhand and Bihar. Apart from electricity, even clean drinking water is not available to the people of the region. When enquiries were made, we are were told this is due to the lack of water at the Farakka Dam. What lack of water? Sir, I do not know.

Through you, Sir, I urge the Centre to take immediate and drastic measures to restore water supply to the Farakka Dam so that electricity generation is restarted.

Sir, many years ago the sitting government in Delhi lost elections due to water crisis. I hope there is no connection of this incident with the upcoming Bengal elections. I hope not.

I hope lakhs and crores of people who are suffering daily are given immediate relief. Sir, officials have gone on record to say that till March 21, there is no way that normalcy can be restored. Sir, in ten days the amount of damage that will be done to the people due to lack of electricity and water will be tremendous.

Sir, through you, I would like to urge the Minister to give some reply on this matter today itself and inform us as to what steps he plans to take to solve this emergency, or else, Sir, this issue would turn into a national calamity and a national crisis.

Thank you.

Md Nadimul Haque makes a Special Mention regarding school timings at primary level

Sir, attendance constitutes the most important factor in children’s learning at all levels of education. Though the overall attendance of students under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan has shown improvement from 68.5% in 2006 to 76.2% in 2013 at the primary level, and, from 75.7% in 2006 to 77.8% in 2013 at the upper primary level, a pattern of low attendance still continues to pose a challenge for children’s learning and development at the primary and upper primary levels. One of the reasons for absence of primary and upper primary students from schools has been attributed to children’s requirement to help parents in their agricultural activities. This is particularly required because harvesting of some crops is a labour-intensive process. The problem is further aggravated by the fact that presently there is no adequate system put in place to track students’ attendance during the harvesting season which, in turn, culminates into poor curriculum planning for the year and finally leads to students not only breaking a continuous study momentum for a particular year but also missing important lessons for their learning.

Hence, education being a concurrent subject, we demand from the Government to put in place adequate mechanisms to track the trend of students’ attendance during the harvesting season and to make necessary changes in school timings during the harvesting season to adjust the same as per the needs of the children.

Nadimul Haque speaks on the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill

Sir, today I stand before the House to discuss the Real Estate Bill. In my opinion, the real estate sector constitutes as the most important building block of a nation, as it provides infrastructure and housing for a better life to all the people residing in the country. However, in our country, a specific law, stating the duties and rights of buyers and promoters involved in the real estate sector, has been largely left unaddressed. Though the consumer in our country could avail the remedies available under the civil, criminal and consumer laws against these players, yet these remedies are not broad enough to address all the issues and concerns of the buyers and consumers of real estate. This situation has led to gross mismanagement and unprofessionalism in the field of real estate, wherein the project developers indulge in tactics of deliberate delays and other wrongdoing. In order to address these issues, the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 2013. It was later referred to the Standing Committee and then to the Select Committee. Both these Committees have submitted their reports. The Bill, as it stands today, regulates transactions between buyers and promoters of residential real estate projects. It establishes State-level regulatory authorities, called the Real Estate Regulatory Authorities (RERAs). The promoters need to be registered with the RERAs. They cannot book or offer their projects for sale without registering. The real estate agents, dealing in these projects, also need to register with the RERAs. On registration, the promoter must upload the details of the project on their website.

Sir, the Bill also contains the penalty provisions. In case, the promoter fails to register the property, he may be penalized up to 10 per cent of the estimated cost of the project. Failure to do this, despite orders issued by the RERA, will lead to imprisonment up to three years.

He will have to also pay 5 per cent of the estimated cost of the project if he violates any other provisions of the Act. However, Sir, there are some grey areas in this Bill which I would like to point out clause-wise.

Clause 3(2)(a), which relates to the registration of real estate project, of the original Bill mandated that registration was not necessary where the area of the land proposed to be developed does not exceed 1000 square metres or the number of apartments proposed to be developed does not exceed 12. Sir, the Select Committee reduced this to 500 square metres and 8 apartments, and power was given to the appropriate Government to reduce the threshold from 500 square metres and 8 apartments. Sir, it is pertinent to mention that if this clause is passed, then it may lead to the exclusion of middle class or poor class who are vulnerable to a higher rate from the promoters.

Sir, secondly, as per Clause 4(2)(i)(d), the original Bill puts a positive obligation on the promoter to put 50 per cent funds, as notified, in a separate bank account for construction work. Sir, it does not take into account the fact that there might be different situations in different States wherein the cost of land may be higher than the cost of construction.

Sir, Clause 5(2) in the original Bill stated that if the application of the promoter to register is not accepted or rejected in 15 days, then the project shall be deemed to be registered. The Committee recommended that this period be extended to 30 days. Sir, I have to say that the said clause can be subjected to abuse as there might be a lot of instances that the authorities might not be able to register a promoter project due to overburden of work.

Sir, Clause 7(1)(a) states the revocation of registration. The original Bill included ‘wilful default’ on the part of the promoter to do anything under the Act will lead to revocation of the registration. The panel had recommended that the word ‘wilful’ be deleted from the definition. However, Sir, the recommendation of the panel to delete ‘wilful’ is meritorious. At the same time, the recommendation tilts the balance in favour of the buyer and against the promoter. The promoter is now strictly liable under the Bill for any default.

By deleting the word ‘wilful’ from the definition, the promoter is now liable also in a case where he may have acted in good faith. The aforesaid recommendation would equally establish a balance between the right of the buyer as well as that of an honest promoter.

Lastly, Sir, this Bill does not include anything about the sanctioning authorities. For example, even if a project is completed and there is a delay in seeking a completion certificate from the local authority or there is a delay in obtaining electrical and water connections, the project cannot be offered for possession to the buyers on time. For this purpose, Sir, rules and recommendations to the sanctioning authorities have to be incorporated in the Bill.

With this, Sir, I rest my case supporting the Bill. Thank you.