On Day 1 of Himachal Assembly’s Winter Session, govt tables Bill to amend land ceiling law

Objecting to the move, Thakur said, “The Bills cannot be introduced when a discussion under Rule 67 is in progress.”

Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania, however, clarified, “I have the authority under Rule 326 of the Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Vidhan Sabha to allow the introduction of Bills during discussions brought under Rule 67. The government has sought my prior permission to introduce the Bills.”

The Himachal Pradesh Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Bill, 2024, addresses a request from Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB), a prominent religious and spiritual organisation, to transfer the Bhota Charitable Hospital to its sister organisation, Maharaja Jagat Singh Medical Relief Society (MJSMRS) in Hamirpur district.

The RSSB had approached the state government to facilitate the land transfer but faced obstacles due to existing land transfer laws. Following this, the organisation posted a notice on the hospital’s gate on November 25 stating that it would no longer be able to provide services.

The request for the land transfer aimed to obtain GST exemptions for purchasing medical equipment and upgrading the hospital’s facilities.

The hospital’s closure sparked widespread protests last month, with people, especially women blocking roads in protest. On November 28, the protesters, demanding a written assurance from the state government that the hospital would remain open, blocked the Shimla-Dharamshala road near Hamirpur.

Following the protests, Sukhu had said the state government would introduce an amendment to the Land Ceiling Act in the winter session of the parliament and directed officials to prepare a draft of the amendment bill.

The hospital resumed its service the next day.

Located in the foothills of the Himalayas, the 75-bed Bhota Hospital on the Hamirpur-Shimla highway has been offering free medical care since 2000. It serves lakhs of people from over 900 villages within a 15-km radius.

The other three Bills introduced were the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2024, the Himachal Pradesh Recruitment and Conditions of Services Bill, and the Himachal Pradesh Police (Amendment) Bill.

Thakur was absent during the introduction of the Bills. Upon returning to the House, he urged the Speaker to “withdraw the Bills and table them again”.

Parliamentary Affairs-cum-Industry Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan, however, retorted, “The government has a majority in the House and the Bills were introduced with the Speaker’s due permission.”

“The Winter Session will last for four days, and the Bills must be introduced three days before for a detailed discussion. Therefore, the Bills were introduced today,” Chauhan added.

Rule 67 of the Procedure and Conduct of Business in the HP Vidhan Sabha allows for the adjournment of House business to discuss a matter of urgent public importance, with the Speaker’s consent. Despite objections, the Speaker informed the House that the Bills would be introduced and later overruled the objections of the LoP, declaring the four Bills as introduced.

Sources said BJP MLAs Balbir Singh Verma (Chopal) and Surender Shourie (Banjar) were present in the House when the Bills were introduced.

The MLAs, however, claimed that they had objected to the introduction of the Bills, but the Speaker had informed the members beforehand about the introduction of the Bills.