‘For ease of living, doing business’: Maharashtra approves ordinance to decriminilise minor offences under 7 Acts
The Maharashtra Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Ordinance, 2025, officials said, will help reduce unnecessary legal pressure on individuals, traders, businesses and service providers while improving transparency and trust in government systems.
Officials said this exercise will not only ease the burden on citizens and small businesses but also help reduce the number of minor cases pending in courts.
The Maharashtra Cabinet on Tuesday approved an ordinance that will pave the way for decriminalising minor offences under seven Acts of the state and making it easier for citizens and businesses to follow government rules without facing criminal charges for small or technical lapses.
The decision, officials claim, is a part of a broader effort to promote ease of living and ease of doing business in the state.
The Maharashtra Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Ordinance, 2025, officials said, will help reduce unnecessary legal pressure on individuals, traders, businesses and service providers while improving transparency and trust in government systems.
The state ordinance, on the lines of Centre’s Jan Vishwas Act, 2023, seeks to bring Maharashtra’s laws in line with the national initiative to simplify compliance and modernise outdated regulations.
The ordinance seeks to amend provisions in seven state Acts spanning five administrative departments such as Labour, Revenue, Finance, Medical Education and Drugs, and Public Health.
Under the proposal, minor penal provisions will either be removed or decriminalised or rationalised in the Maharashtra Industrial Relations Act, 1946; Maharashtra Recognition of Trade Unions and Prevention of Unfair Labour Practices Act, 1971; and Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Act, 2017.
The Maharashtra Stamp Act, 1958, the Maharashtra Medical Council Act, 1965, the Maharashtra State Tax on Professions, Trades and Employments Act, 1975, and the Maharashtra Nursing Homes Registration Act, 1949 will also be covered.
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Under the new framework, criminal penalties such as imprisonment for small procedural or technical violations will be replaced with monetary fines or administrative actions.
For instance, delays in licence renewals, minor record-keeping errors, or paperwork lapses that currently attract criminal action may now be treated as compoundable or civil offences.
The state government has tied up with the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy by signing an agreement to review its laws and identify provisions where punishments can be rationalised.
The think tank will review all state legislations and identify provisions that criminalise procedural lapses or minor regulatory breaches.
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So far, the state has reviewed 31 Acts, and recommendations have been made to simplify or decriminalise provisions in 26 of them.
Officials said this exercise will not only ease the burden on citizens and small businesses but also help reduce the number of minor cases pending in courts. “People should not live in fear of jail for small mistakes,” a senior official said. “The idea is to build a system that trusts citizens and focuses on compliance rather than punishment.”
“The ordinance is a major step towards improving transparency and ease of doing business. It will reduce the number of redundant rules, make compliance more predictable, and strengthen citizens’ trust in government processes,” the official added.
At the national level, the Cabinet Secretariat has set up a Deregulation Cell and a task force to monitor how states implement such reforms.
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The Chief Secretaries’ Conference held in December 2024 had urged states to expedite legal clean-up drives aimed at reducing unnecessary criminalisation in administrative laws.
Vallabh Ozarkar is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express' Mumbai bureau, recognized as an authoritative and deeply knowledgeable voice on the politics, governance, and infrastructure of Maharashtra. With more than nine years of experience in major news organizations, his reporting delivers high standards of Expertise and Trustworthiness.
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