Jan Vishwas Bill passed in Lok Sabha; amends 183 provisions to convert fines, jail to penalties

In a major relief to the Indian businesses, Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Jan Vishwas bill, with six amendments that were being recommended by the joint parliamentary committee. With an aim to promote ease of doing business and ease of living, the bill proposes to amend 183 provisions to be decriminalised in 42 Central Acts administered by 19 ministries and departments.

Through the bill, the government has also proposed the formation of a working group appellate to decriminalise laws and promote ease of doing business. Moreover, offences under the Post Office Act of 1898 have been removed.

Piyush Goyal, the minister of commerce and industry, said in Parliament that as many as 40,000 provisions and procedures, that can potentially impact the people, have been either removed or simplified by the government in the past nine years.

The development comes months after the bill was first tabled in Parliament on December 22, last year. The bill was then sent to the joint parliamentary committee for review. The committee, after discussions with various stakeholders including departments and ministries, submitted a report in March, recommending 7 amendments to the bill. Of this, the government accepted 6 recommendations by the ministry.

Through the bill, the government has converted several fines into penalties in some provisions. The bill has also removed imprisonment and fine in some provisions. In certain provisions, the bill has removed imprisonment and retained fines. In a few provisions, while the fine has been enhanced, imprisonment has been removed. The compounding of offences is proposed to be introduced in a few provisions.

"The criminal consequences prescribed for technical/procedural lapses and minor defaults, clog the justice delivery system and puts adjudication of serious offences on the back burner. Some of the amendments proposed in the Bill are to introduce suitable administrative adjudication mechanisms, wherever applicable and feasible. This would go a long way in reducing undue pressure on the justice system, reduce the pendency of cases and help in a more efficient and effective justice dispensation," says the ministry.

The amended bill will contribute to rationalising criminal provisions and ensuring that citizens, businesses and government departments operate without fear of imprisonment for minor, technical or procedural defaults. "The nature of the penal consequence of an offence committed should be commensurate with the seriousness of the offence. This bill establishes a balance between the severity of the offence/violation committed and the gravity of the prescribed punishment. The proposed amendments ensure the adherence to the law by businesses and citizens, without losing the rigour of the law," says the ministry.

"Decriminalisation of provisions which affect citizens and certain categories of government employees will help them live without the fear of imprisonment for minor violations," it adds.