CHANDIGARH, Nov 1:
The Punjab Cabinet has decided to amend the Punjab State Legislature (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1952, under which the advisors to the chief minister for planning and political matters will not be disqualified for holding offices of profit.
The bill amending Section 2 of the act will be presented in the forthcoming session of the Punjab Assembly.
A spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office on Friday said that after this amendment the members of the assembly appointed under this category will not be disqualified for holding offices of profit.
The Punjab State Legislature (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1952 was enacted in terms of Article 191 of the Constitution to declare that the holders of certain offices of profit could not be disqualified from being members of the state legislature.
The act has undergone minor amendments from time to time. However, such amendments have not taken into account the complexity of modern day governance, the spokesperson said.
They also did not take into account reports and studies of various parliamentary committees which addressed the issue of office of profit. Therefore, the cabinet felt there was a need to amend Section 2 of the act, the spokesperson said.
In another decision, the Cabinet also approved the presentation of the Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes (Amendment) Ordin-ance, 2019 in the ensuing session of assembly for enactment.
The enactment would pave the way for increasing the age limit from the existing 70 years to 72 years for appointment as chairperson of the commission.
This would also allow more experienced people to be appointed as chairperson of the SC Commission to ensure effective implementation of laws meant for protecting and safeguarding the panel’s interests.
Meanwhile, the Cabinet also gave approval to amend the Punjab Regulation of Fee of Unaided Educational Institutions Act, 2016, through presentation of a bill in the state assembly for its conversion into an act.
The amendment will provide a mechanism for regulating the fees of unaided educational institutions in the state. It will also protect the interests of the students, whose earning family members have died, and no fees will be charged from them till the completion of their studies.
A suitable amendment has also been proposed in the act to curb the practice of unaided educational institution prescribing specific uniforms/books, the spokesperson said. (PTI)
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