Due to the non-passage of the amendment Act, Cabinet on Wednesday passed again an Ordinance for continuation of Enemy Property Act. This is the fifth time the Ordinance was promulgated as the fifty-year-old Act’s amendments were pending before Parliament.
“The Bill was referred to the select committee of the Rajya Sabha as the Congress had pressed for it. We agreed and incorporated recommendations of the committee, still the bill was not allowed to pass,” a senior government functionary said. The move is being taken to amend the nearly five-decade old Enemy Property Act to guard against claims of succession or transfer of properties left by people who migrated to Pakistan and China after wars.
“Enemy property” refers to any property belonging to, held or managed on behalf of an enemy, an enemy subject or an enemy firm. After the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965, the Enemy Property Act was enacted in 1968, which regulates such properties and lists the Custodian’s powers.
As per the proposed amendments, once an enemy property is vested in the Custodian, it shall continue to be vested in him as enemy property irrespective of whether the enemy, enemy subject or enemy firm has ceased to be an enemy due to reasons such as death, etc.