Justice Jain appointed Chairman of Law Commission

New Delhi, Jan 7, 2013, DHNS:

 

Supreme Court judge Justice D K Jain has been appointed as the chairman of the 20th Law Commission of India. Justice Jain is set to retire as the apex court judge on January 24, 2013. The 20th Law Commission was constituted through a government order with effect from September 1, last. Its three-year term would end on August 31, 2015. 

The terms of reference of the 20th Law Commission would include reviewing obsolete laws and identifying those legislations laws, no longer needed or relevant.

The Commission would also identify laws not in harmony with the existing climate of economic liberalisation or required changes or amendments and suggest suitable measures for quick redressal of citizens grievances.

 Besides, it would examine the existing laws with a view for promoting gender equality and would also look into the laws which affected the poor and carry out post-audit for socio-economic legislations.

Govt decides to move official amendment to define minority

New Delhi, Dec 19 (PTI)
Government today decided to move an official amendment to the Constitution to define minority, a step which could enable it designate the Jains as a minority community.

A meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, today approved a proposal to introduce the Constitution 103rd Amendment Bill to define minority, Home Minister P Chidambaram told reporters here.

The legislation came in the backdrop of several Supreme Court directives to the government to decide on the issue.

"This Bill is about the power to define a minority. The Supreme Court directed the Centre to decide the issue of giving minority status to Jains. A number of orders have been passed by the Supreme Court in this behalf," he said.

The Bill was introduced earlier and referred to the Standing Committee. After considering its recommendations, it was decided to move official amendments. However, the notice for amendments issued to Lok Sabha secretariat lapsed.

"Further issues were raised in the meantime. These have now been resolved and action will be taken to move the official amendments to the pending Constitution amendment bill," Chidambaram said.

Under the proposed amendment, minority means a community which may be specified by the President or notified by the Central government, the Minister said.

The Cabinet also decided to pursue its earlier decision to accord Scheduled Tribe status to the children of the inhabitants of Lakshadweep, who were born in any other place in India. So far, the children of such people who had moved to other parts of the country were denied ST status. PTI

Gujarat pulls out anti-conversion bill

Gujarat government pulls out the controversial Gujarat Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Bill on Monday which made state interference necessary for conversion but allowed conversion from one faction to another in the same religion.

The move came only after the Governor N K Sharma returned the bill to sought explanation of the provision given in the bill against Article 25 of our Constitution.

The Governor remarked, “The provisions of amendment bill violated Article 25 of the constitution, which guarantees to all citizens to freely profess, practice and propagate any religion. The bill should be reconsidered for suitable amendments so as to bring its contents in conformity with the constitution.”

“The proposed amendment would amount to withdrawing the protection against forceful or inappropriate religious conversions, particularly in case of Jains and Buddhists,” he added.
A provision in the bill clubbed Jain and Buddhism into the same religion Hindu, Sunni and Shia in Muslim while placing Protestants and Catholics in Christianity.

The ire of the people and various institutions lied in the provision for seeking the DM's permission mandatory for any conversion, unlike other state where this is not mandatory.
The withdrawal of the bill is also seen as aftereffects Asma Jahangir who visited Gujarat on March 9 as UN special representative on freedom of religion and met Narendra Modi who assured her that there is complete religious freedom in Gujarat and the minorities are safe in the state.

The bill aims at discouraging conversion but especially it will batter Dalits as the bill clubbed Jainism, Buddhism with Hinduism. Dalits generally convert to Buddhism, who might be forcibly converted or lure back to convert to Hinduism. The bill also wanted to replace the definition of forced conversion under which a person if relinquished one denomination and adopt another of the same religion would be excluded from the purview of conversion. The amendment but considered Sikh as separate religion.

The All India Digambar Jain Dharam Sanrakshini Sabha reacted strongly with the other social and religious organisation against the union of their religion with Hindu.

This step as many experts view will flare up communal tensions and it also defy Supreme Court verdict which identified both Jainism and Buddhism as separate religion in 1992 and 2004 respectively.