Jharkhand Government to Reintroduce Controversial Domicile Bill

JMM-Congress-RJD Alliance Defiant on Domicile Bill Amid Legal Concerns

The Jharkhand government is set to reintroduce the contentious domicile Bill in the ongoing assembly session, sparking a fresh confrontation with the Governor’s office over its legal and constitutional validity.

RANCHI – Supriyo Bhattacharya, JMM general secretary and spokesperson, affirmed the government’s commitment to tabling the domicile Bill again during the current assembly session.

The Bill, known as ‘Jharkhand definition of local persons and for extending the consequential, social, cultural and other benefits to such local persons Bill, 2022′, seeks to define locals based on 1932 land records.

Under the Bill, those whose ancestors are listed in the 1932 Khatiyan would be considered locals, eligible for class 3 and 4 state government jobs.

Governor CP Radhakrishnan returned the Bill for reconsideration, citing potential violations of Articles 14 and 16(2) of the Constitution.

The legality of using 1932 land records for determining domicile status was questioned by the Governor based on the attorney general’s advice.

Rabindra Nath Mahto, the Assembly Speaker, relayed the Governor House’s concerns about the Bill’s potential constitutional violations.

Bhattacharya criticized the Governor House for allegedly delaying the Bill’s approval for a year without substantive suggestions.

Although Bhattacharya didn’t reveal if the Bill would undergo changes, sources suggest it might be reintroduced in its original form.

He pointed out that several states have policies reserving class 3 and 4 jobs for local people, underlining the Bill’s relevance.

The Jharkhand government’s move to reintroduce the Bill underlines its determination to fulfill electoral commitments, despite legal and constitutional hurdles.