West Bengal Governor Returns Controversial Bill to State Government for Review

A senior official from the Raj Bhavan has revealed that the Governor of West Bengal, C.V. Anand Bose, has returned the Aparajita Bill to the state government for further consideration. This decision comes in light of serious objections raised by the central government regarding proposed amendments to the Indian Penal Code. According to the official, the central authorities noted that the Aparajita Women and Child (West Bengal Criminal Law Amendment) Bill, passed in the assembly in September 2024, seeks to alter the punishment for rape under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, which they deemed excessively harsh and inconsistent.

Despite the governor's actions, the state government has indicated that it has not yet received any feedback from either the central government or the governor's office regarding the bill's provisions. The legislation proposes to increase the minimum punishment for rape from the current 10 years to life imprisonment or even the death penalty. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has flagged several provisions of the bill as problematic. Following the MHA's comments, the governor has sent the bill back to the state government for appropriate consideration.

Referring to the MHA's observations, the governor highlighted that the central government criticized the proposal to amend Section 64 of the IPC, which would raise the minimum punishment for rape to life imprisonment or death, as excessively severe and inconsistent.