The Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Thursday adopted the Karnataka Land Grabbing Prohibition (Amendment) Bill, 2022, in a modified form.
The adoption of the Bill, which seeks to keep farmers out of the ambit of stringent norms related to land-grabbing, including initiating criminal proceedings, had been delayed by a day when it came up in the House on Wednesday following a suggestion by the members to revise it.
The revised Bill seeks to amend the Karnataka Land Grabbing Prohibition Act, 2011, to avoid criminal proceedings against farmers who have encroached government land in rural areas by excluding all the places from the purview of this Act except the places within the limits of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, city corporations, city and town municipal councils.
Earlier, the Bill had sought to keep the stringent provisions of the Act in abeyance in all areas except in the limits of the BBMP and city corporations. The members had expressed fear that such a provision would help land-grabbers. Following this, the jurisdiction of the Bill has now been sought to be widened and farmers would be insulated only in rural areas.
The House also adopted the Karnataka Stamps (third amendment Bill).
