Karnataka assembly passes land reforms bill with amendments by council
Bengaluru: A day after the Legislative Council passed the contentious "The Karnataka Land Reforms (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020" that liberalises farmland ownership with certain amendments, it was adopted by the assembly on Wednesday, despite the Congress staging a walkout.
The government on Tuesday had managed to pass the bill in the legislative council after JD(S) backed it.
"We have not made any major changes to the bill that was discussed and passed earlier by this House, other than certain minor things, giving some clarity with clarifications," Revenue Minister R Ashoka said.
Senior Congress MLA H K Patil, however, moved certain amendments to the bill, which was objected to by BJP MLA K G Bopaiah and Law Minister J C Madhuswamy, stating that no amendments can be moved at this stage as the bill has already been passed by this house and the legislative council.
Stating that discussions can happen only on amendments made by the council, Madhuswamy said the bill cannot be debated with fresh amendments suggested by any member.
Asking Patil whether he was trying to amend the Constitution, he pointed out that the amendment he suggested proposes to restrict people of other states from purchasing land in Karnataka.
As Siddaramaiah rose to defend Patil, saying that the government was giving land to non-agriculturists and corporate bodies, Madhuswamy hit back at the former Chief Minister, pointing out that one who allowed change of land use by bringing amendments in 2015 should not speak now.
Amid argument between some Congress and BJP MLAs following this, Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri, citing rules, rejected the amendments moved by Patil.
The bill was then passed by a voice vote in the assembly, even as Congress legislators staged a walk out.
Before going to the council, the assembly had passed the bill during the monsoon session in September. It had replaced an ordinance to the effect, promulgated by the government in July.
As the bill was pending before the council, the government in October had re-promulgate the ordinance.
The Karnataka Land Reforms (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020 that further amends the act of 1961, removing almost all restrictions on buying farm land.
The assembly also passed the Karnataka Stamp (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020, aimed at giving an impetus to the growth of industry in the state as proposed in the Industrial Policy and to reduce the stamp duty to first sale of flat or apartment up to Rs 35 lakh as proposed in the budget.
Also passed was the Karnataka Parliamentary Secretaries Salary, Allowances and Miscellaneous Provisions (Repeal) Bill, 2020.
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MP boat tragedy: Death toll rises to 10 with recovery of one more body; 3 tourists still missing
Jabalpur (PTI): The body of a child was retrieved on Saturday evening from Bargi Dam in Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh, raising the death toll in the cruise boat tragedy that took place two days ago to ten, while search continued for three missing tourists.
The boat, operated by the state tourism department, capsized during a storm on Thursday evening with some of the survivors alleging negligence and safety lapses such as life jackets not being distributed in time.
The body recovered on Saturday evening was possibly that of six-year-old Viraj Soni, said Sub-Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) Anjul Ayank Mishra.
"The identity will be confirmed after family members identify the body," he told PTI.
Kamraj, an employee of the Ordnance Factory at Khamaria, his five-year-old son Tamil, and another child Mayuram (5) who had come from southern India were still missing.
Authorities have arranged equipment to search deep waters of the dam and are getting a generator to facilitate diving operations, Mishra added.
Divers and disaster response teams have expanded the search radius to five km, he said.
Of the 41 identified passengers on board the ill-fated vessel, 28 were rescued, police said.
More than 200 rescuers, including around 20 Army divers airlifted from Agra, joined the search operation that resumed at 5 on Saturday morning. The operation, involving the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force and local divers, was briefly affected at around 9 am due to strong winds, officials said.
Post-mortem examinations of nine deceased persons have been completed, Mishra said.
"Our priority is to search for the missing persons. We will also register a First Information Report in the case soon," he said.
Police said CCTV footage near the boarding point showed 43 people heading towards the boat while the identities of 41 passengers have been confirmed so far.
The state government on Friday ordered a probe into the tragedy and dismissed three crew members. It also banned operation of similar vessels in the state.
