Cabinet approves Adjudicating Authority for speedy disposal of benami cases
New Delhi, Oct 24 : The government Wednesday approved setting up of Appellate Tribunal and Adjudicating Authority for speedy disposal of cases related to benami transactions.
The decision was taken at the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad at press briefing.
Earlier this month, the government had notified Sessions courts in 34 states and Union Territories, which will act as special courts for trial of offences under the benami transaction law.
Benami transaction refers transactions made in a fictitious name, or the owner is not aware of the ownership of the property, or the person paying for the property is not traceable.
As per an official release, the Adjudicating Authority and Appellate Tribunal will be based in the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCTD).
Benches of Adjudicating Authority may sit in Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai, and the necessary notification in this regard will be issued after consultation with the Chairperson of the proposed Adjudicating Authority.
"The approval will result in effective and better administration of cases referred to the Adjudicating Authority and speedy disposal of appeals filed against the order of the Adjudicating Authority before the Appellate Tribunal," the release said.
The appointment of the Adjudicating Authority, it added, would provide first stage review of administrative action under the the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act (PBPT) Act.
Establishment of the proposed Appellate Tribunal would provide an appellate mechanism for the order passed by the Adjudicating Authority under the PBPT Act.
The rules and all the provisions of the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act came into force on November 1, 2016.
After coming into effect, the existing Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988, was renamed as the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988.
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Waqf (Amendment) Act will not be implemented in West Bengal: Mamata Banerjee
Kolkata, Apr 12 (PTI): The Waqf (Amendment) Act will not be implemented in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Saturday amid violent protests in the state.
Banerjee said the law was made by the Centre and answers should be sought from it.
"My sincere appeal to people of all religions, please remain calm, remain restrained. Do not engage in any irreligious behaviour in the name of religion. Every human life is precious; do not incite riots for the sake of politics. Those who are inciting riots are harming society," she said in a post on X.
Several vehicles, including police vans, were set on fire, stones were hurled at security forces, and roads were blocked as violence rocked Malda, Murshidabad, South 24 Parganas and Hooghly districts during protests over the new legislation on Friday.
"Remember, we did not make the law over which many are agitated. The law was made by the central government. So the answer you want should be sought from the central government," the CM said.
"We have made our position clear on this matter -- we do not support this law. This law will not be implemented in our state. So what is the riot about," she asked.
Banerjee said legal action will be taken against those inciting riots.
"We do not condone any violent activity. Some political parties are trying to misuse religion for political gain. Do not give in to their persuasion," she said.
"I think religion means humanity, goodwill, civilisation and harmony. I appeal to everyone to maintain peace and harmony," she added.
