The contentious Enemy Property (amendment and validation) Bill finally looked set for passage in Parliament on Monday after the government on Friday managed to secure the main oppositions indirect cooperation besides getting on board members belonging to the Muslim community. As part of the understanding,the government will now move another fresh clause in the list of amendments that will partially address concerns raised by BJP regarding legal rights of tenants and lessees occupying the enemy properties. And though the latter will oppose the Bill on the floor of the House,it will neither seek division of the vote nor work towards defeating the legislation. In the consultations that Union Home Minister P Chidambaram held with leaders of Opposition Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley to hammer out an understanding,he suggested the new amendment to partially address BJP concerns. The Home Minister,along with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal and Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid,also held consultations with Muslim MPs where they backed the changes in the Bill. Nothing contained in this Act shall affect any claim made by any person before any court or other authority against the owner or his lawful heir to whom the property was or may be returned under the Act and such claim shall be decided in accordance with law by the court or other authority,as the case may be, the new provision to be inserted in Clause 13 said. This provision,government managers said,would enable tenants and occupants of the enemy properties to persist with their legal battle in court for legal possession. The BJP,however,maintained that it had not cut any deal with the government. We are not in the habit of deal making unlike some other parties. We will oppose the Bill though not insist on division as numbers are not in our favour, Sushma Swaraj told reporters. The BJP,in fact,will be using the debate to score political points on the floor of the House. We dont understand why the government is dividing a Bill on communal lines. Why have a meeting with only Muslim MPs separately, Swaraj said. During the negotiations with the government,the BJP proposed that the legislation be sent to the standing committee arguing the inclusion of the amendments meant it was a new Bill. The government turned it down as doing so would have meant that the ordinance issued to change the Act would have lapsed. Meanwhile,the monsoon session of Lok Sabha has been extended till August 31,an official statement said Friday. According to the schedule announced earlier,the Lower House was supposed to wrap up its business by Friday evening. The Rajya Sabha had already decided to sit till August 31.
